Protected By Angels
by Hyperteenager24
Summary: As a re-write of my Avengers next generation story, this first part will cover all the pairings and their family, from when the children are born, to around three years old :)
1. Joseph Nelson Murdock

Alright, so I know that some people have read the beginning of this series before, but I thought that it needed a re-write, with new chapters and storylines ?

So please read, review and enjoy.

…

Matt didn't usually feel scared…. It wasn't in his nature, not when he spent long hours on the rooftops of Hell's Kitchen.

But when he heard Foggy's whoops, cheering about the adoption approval, Matt could honestly say that he was terrified.

As the sounds of children playing got closer, Matt could feel sweat building up on the palms of his hands, making his stick slippery as he tapped his way up the stone steps.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" he asked

Foggy groaned theatrically at Mat as he gently ushered his husband towards the local orphanage. "We've been together since law school, we live together and now that we actually have a nice, spacious apartment, equipped with baby room, a seedling is the final step!"

Smiling at the enthusiasm in Foggy's voice, Matt nudged the other man in the side. "You know… most people wait for a time after marriage, before having a… seedling?"

"Not Susie, don't you remember? Less than two months after getting married, she had the kid…. Our way is way more sensible."

"Seedling?"

"Well, avocados have seeds… it made sense in my head okay?! Now, the papers have been approved, despite their initial concerns about two men raising a kid, so all we to do is meet the children and make a decision... it is just me, or is the adoption process just like shopping?"

"You can't call it that Foggy!" Matt chuckled, as Foggy gently coached him up the stairs (despite Matt not actually needing any help) "I remember being in an orphanage and trust me… shopping centres are better."

As Foggy opened the large doors to the orphanage, Matt winced when the sounds of crying, screaming and laughing children hit his ears. The smell of full diapers, vomit and paint caused him to gag slightly as he took some time to dial everything down.

Foggy, however, had clearly noticed the wincing…. And the fact that Matt had stopped right in the middle of the entrance. "Hey, you okay?"

"Yeah…. Yeah."

"W-we can forget about this if you want? I can cancel the appointment and we can come back another day?"

Matt sighed softly…. Foggy sounded like he really didn't want to go home and give up now. "No, no… just let me adjust."

The pair waited outside for a few minutes before entering the large building and striding over to the receptionist's desk.

"Hi, we have an appointment with a Miss Hayley Marks?" Foggy greeted the young lady at the desk, who glanced at Matt for a brief second before plastering an overly happy smile on her face and nodding eagerly.

"Of course. If you would just wait here whilst I call for her?"

They nodded, moving to sit in the waiting room. Minutes passed by, and Matt began to focus on a single cry, coming from up ahead and slightly to the left.

"Do you hear that?" he asked Foggy, keeping his voice low so as not to be over-heard.

"The baby? Yeah, I feel like it hasn't stopped to breathe in the last five minutes."

The pair continued to listen to the crying, until they were approached by a middle-aged lady.

"Misters Nelson-Murdock?"

Foggy helped Matt to his feet, before shaking the lady's hand. "I'm Mister Nelson and my partner here is Mister Murdock…. We decided not to hyphenate."

Matt smirked at this. He'd personally wanted to hyphenate their names, wanting to partially adhere to traditional marriages by sharing a name with his husband... not that he ever really vocalised these thoughts.

"I understand…" The lady, who was probably Miss Hayley Marks, answered, "… now, if you would just like to follow me, I can introduce you to some of the children. Do you have an age preference?"

Matt and Foggy nodded, but as they were led further down the hallway, Matt found himself drawn the room that seemed to contain the crying baby.

"Ummmm, excuse me?"

"Yes, Mister Murdock?"

Gesturing at the room with his cane, Matt continued, "That baby has been crying for a while now. Isn't there anyone who could calm him down?"

There was a sad sigh, "We've tried…. But at this time of the day, he just continues to cry. We've tried everything."

She then led them into the room, which Foggy described to Matt, whispering in his ear so that Matt had a good idea of where everything was.

According to the description, the walls were a light blue and the cot was in the centre of the room. Any toys that there were, were stored in the corner of the room (less of a tripping hazard for Matt). As they wandered up to the cot, Matt clearly heard Foggy's heart-beat skip slightly.

"What is it Foggy?"

"…. He's so tiny…. How is he making that much noise, he's tiny."

"What does he look like?"

"…. Ummmm, like every other baby. He looks like he'll have brown hair though, but I'm not sure about his eyes, they're scrunched up pretty tightly."

"So sad…" sighed Miss Marks, as Matt and Foggy turned in her direction, "… his parents signed him over just over a week ago."

"Couldn't afford to keep him?"

"Quite the opposite. They had nice suits on, their car was nice…. But they considered him to be…. Imperfect."

Miss Marks gently stroked the boy's hair, soothing him as his eyes slowly opened. She then waved her hand over his eyes and Foggy (who was relaying these actions back to Matt) noticed that the baby's eyes did not follow the movement.

"He's blind!" gasped Foggy in shock, causing Matt to flinch slightly.

"The nerves behind his eyes didn't develop properly, so he was born blind…" Miss Marks explained, "… his mum and dad must have kept him for a few weeks before finding the task of caring for him too difficult. They didn't even seem to care that they were signing over a human life!"

The baby seemed to miss the gentle touch, and started to scream once again.

It was then, that Matt came to a realisation. "It's too loud…." He whispered.

There was a brief moment of silence, before Foggy clicked his fingers and gasped. "His hearing…." Began Foggy, "… he's more aware of what he's hearing, making it seem louder to him. The children playing and the sounds of everything going on around him are overwhelming… no matter where you place him. Mat has the same problem sometimes."

"So, maybe a specialised room or some form of ear plugs would help?" Hayley asked, understanding dawning in her voice.

"To some degree yes, but- "

Foggy paused as Matt rested his cane against a nearby wall and gently lifted the baby out of the cot, cradling him against his chest. Matt then began to rock, listening as the shrieks began to quieten until they finally tampered off.

Eventually, the baby's heartbeat slowed down until it became clear that the boy was asleep. Once he was sure, Matt placed him back in the cot and grabbed his cane. "Shall we?"

Foggy took his partner's arm again as they were led out of the room.

"I think you surprised her." Muttered Foggy under his breath, as he took a hold of Matt's arm, following the flustered social worker down the hall and into the main playroom.

"… I surprised myself."

….

Meeting the other children was nice…. Forget nice, it was amazing.

After Matt's show of parental affection, Hayley had seriously warmed up to the pair.

"You know…" she began, as there was a moment of quiet in the room, "… if you want to spend more time with the baby in room four, you are very welcome to."

Foggy's heartbeat sped up slightly at this.

"Y-You haven't referred to him by a name yet…" stammered Foggy, "… doesn't he have one?"

There was another sad sigh from Miss Marks.

"His parents didn't seem to bother… I mean, there must be a name on his birth certificate, but we don't have access to that. When they signed him over, they referred to him as "boy" and refused to give us his true name."

She shuddered, "I hate to think about what might have happened if he'd remained in their custody any longer."

Knowing that Foggy was probably thinking the same, Matt frowned…. There were too many negative connotations with that particular train of thought.

The trio left the play-room and wandered back down the hallway, heading towards the reception area…. Not that Foggy and Matt made it there…. They stopped inside room 4.

Matt listened as the baby's breathing sped up, indicating that he was waking up and getting ready for another screaming fit. Before the baby could start crying, Matt reached into the cot and gently tapped his fingers against his belly, softly humming as he did so.

To Matt's joy, the baby started to giggle…. As did Foggy.

"Are you really humming the Ducktales theme?"

Matt chuckled, "It's the first thing that came to mind."

From the doorway, Hayley spoke up. "Would you two like to schedule some supervised visits with him? I think…. You three would be good for each other."

Once again, Foggy's heartbeat sped up slightly.

"I think that would be a great idea…." Matt answered, when Foggy remained silent, "… Can we set that up?"

When Miss Marks eagerly agreed and rushed out of the room to grab the paperwork, Foggy wandered over to Matt.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked, "Taking care of a blind baby is going to be difficult."

"Ah-ha, but why shouldn't we give him the same chance as other children? We know how to deal with blindness, we can help him…. And you really like him."

"Yeah… yeah, I do."

…..

It took several more visits over the next couple of months before the baby got used to them and the paperwork was signed. The room in the flat was all painted up, with suitable toys and a cot all ready, Foggy and Matt were ready to take him home.

They entered the orphanages with all the necessities they might need for the journey home, including a pram and a bag of diapers.

Foggy couldn't be more excited.

"This is it!" he exclaimed, practically jumping up the steps.

Matt chuckled as he felt his arm jostle up and down due to the excitement Foggy was feeling. "I know, I know!" he laughed as they walked down the hallway to room four.

As they got closer, he couldn't help but overhear Hayley cooing softly to their soon-to-be-son.

"There we go little one, one foot in… and now the other one…. There's a good boy! Oh, what have you heard?"

Matt grinned to himself and began to tap his stick harder against the floor, in order to make it louder, until they reached the doorway.

"Ah, that's what you heard!" chuckled Hayley as she picked up the baby, who was now waving his arms around, as if searching for a familiar touch. "It's very nice to see you two. Everything is ready at home as well I presume?"

Foggy gently lifted the baby from Hayley's arms, cooing at him as they made their way into the main reception area. After placing him in the cot, Foggy went to fill out the adoption certificate.

"I was wondering…" he began, causing Matt to raise an eyebrow, "… would you like to call him Jack?"

Matt felt as if all the breath had left his body. "W-what?"

He could hear Foggy shift uncomfortably. "Well, I know we wanted to wait until everything was definite before giving him a name, and I thought it would be nice to honour your Dad's memory, what do you think?"

Matt thought to himself for a few moments before shaking his head. "D-do you mind if we have it as a middle name?"

"… Can I ask why?"

"I-I don't want to start comparing him to my Dad." He held up his hand as Foggy drew in a quick breath to protest, "I know it's unlikely, but I'm worried that it might happen."

"… Alright, so what do you want to name him?"

Again, Matt paused to think…. Until he came to a decision. "How about Joseph."

Foggy hummed and aahed to himself, before he agreed and wrote it down on the paper. "Joseph Jack Nelson-Murdock. I like it."


	2. Oliver Rogers

Alright, so I know that some people have read the beginning of this series before, but I thought that it needed a re-write, with new chapters and storylines ?

So please read, review and enjoy.

…

"Stark's up to something."

Steve resisted the urge to roll his eyes as his best friend and lover grumbled beside him. "You always say that, even when he's just sitting down and having something to eat."

Bucky scowled as Howard Stark raced past them and the rest of the Howling Commandos, straight into his personal laboratory. "This time I mean it Stevie! You gotta admit, he's been acting weird… more than usual, I mean."

Shaking his head, Steve grinned. "Leave Howard alone Bucky, and come and help us review the plan." He then turned his attention back to the maps of Southern Germany.

It took some time, but eventually, Bucky stopped glaring at Howards' lab and paid attention to what Steve was saying.

Whatever Howard was up to, it could wait… Or so he thought.

Two months later, Bucky's original statement was proved to be right.

…..

The day had started off as normal.

Bucky had woken up in Steve's arms, the pair entwined together in their shared tent. After getting dressed and eating breakfast, they began their morning training with the rest of the Howling Commandos.

During the push-up sets, Dum Dum Dugan glanced over at Bucky and gestured his head in the direction of Colonel Phillips and Agent Carter, who were speaking in hushed tones by the command tent.

"So…" began the larger man, "… What d'ya think they're gossiping about?"

Bucky finished his set and shook his head, "Probably another mission for us… maybe we'll go somewhere a little less rainy this time around. I swear my boots are still wet from the last mission!"

Their conversation had attracted the attention of the rest of the commandos, including Steve. Following the direction of Bucky and Dugan's gaze, Falsworth nodded in agreement, "Yes… they do seem to be rather distressed about something, and I do not believe it's mission related."

Gabe frowned at this, "What makes you say that Falsworth? I mean, I really hope you don't have super-hearing because otherwise last night was- "

"- Awkward. Yes." Falsworth glared at the now-laughing Gabe, "No Jones, and to be quite frank, the less I know about your night-time activities the better! No, I don't think it's mission related because of the look on Agent Carter's face."

They all frowned at this and Falsworth grinned. "She only has that particular expression when she's talking about Mister Stark and his…. Antics."

"What, annoyance?"

"Not exactly. It's a mix between anger and exasperation, with a tiny hint of disappointment."

There was a brief pause, before Dugan slapped the Brit on the back, propelling him forwards ever so slightly. "It's a wonder you're not getting laid more often Falsy! This understanding woman lark should get you far in life…. Any chance you could teach it?"

As Falsworth shook his head at Dugan's antics, Bucky scoffed. "Well, it's no surprise Stark's being a pain, but Philip's usually lets Stark do what he likes…. Right now, it's amazing he doesn't have steam coming out of the top of his head."

"Which mean that Howard may have crossed the line this time…" Steve sighed, "… I'm going to see what the matter is. Stay here alright? Look busy."

His team nodded reluctantly as Steve marched over to the pair, a curious smile on his face.

"Colonel. Agent Carter. Is everything alright? This seems like an… intense conversation."

Colonel Phillips sighed and gestured towards Howard Stark's lab, "Soldiers have reported strange sounds coming from his lab… stranger than usual I mean. Agent Carter wants to investigate, and I'm inclined to agree with her. Stark's been acting suspiciously for a little under a year not and quite frankly I'm getting sick of it."

Peggy nodded, "Colonel Phillips wants to force his way inside Howard's lab, but there is always the possibility that whatever Howard is doing, is perfectly innocent! Storming in there, guns blazing may do nothing but push Howard away. You know what he's like! If he thinks that we don't trust him, he's going to pack up his stuff and leave!"

She sighed wearily, "Say what you want about Howard, his inventions have helped us win a fair number of battles. We can't do this without him."

"What sort of sounds did the soldiers hear?" Steve asked.

"A few loud bangs, and somethings that sounds like a kitten…. Small squeaking, you know? Stark has also been swearing a lot apparently."

"Well, what's so suspicious about that? No offense to him, but Howard swears almost all the time, especially when he's working. Bangs aren't suspicious in his lab and maybe the soldiers misheard the cat sound? The wind possibly?"

Colonel Phillips reluctantly nodded, before glaring at the lab that Howard was working in. "Hmph…. Maybe…. But I don't like it. My gut's telling me that something's wrong and I'll be damned if I let Howard to anything Frankenstein-y in my camp!"

Suppressing a smile, Steve saluted. "Me and the commandos will keep an eye on him if you want?"

Phillips was about to agree, but Peggy interjected before he could say anything.

"Sorry Cap…" she apologised, "… but we need you to take a reconnaissance mission out into the south woods. There have been reports if Hydra agents roaming about around there…. I'd like for you to check it out, see if there's any truth in that and then report back. Do not engage until unless absolutely necessary, understood?"

"Understood Peg- I mean, Agent Carter."

Steve quickly made his way back over to his team, gesturing for them to pack up their stuff and get ready to move out. As he entered his tent to grab his shield and uniform, he felt a familiar presence behind him, causing him to smile. Turning around, the smile turned to a smirk when he noticed how Bucky's eyes were focused a little lower than what was strictly proper.

"My eyes are up here Bucks."

"But I've got such a pleasant view from here!"

Steve felt his face flush a little, "Just grab your gun and uniform Sergeant."

"Yes Sir!"

As he holstered his rifle, Bucky couldn't help but stare at his best friend. It seemed like only yesterday he was helping the punk get home after yet another fight with some street bullies…. And now look at them.

War heroes of America.

"Sooooo…" began Bucky, "…. What did Phillips and Carter have to say?"

Steve shook his head. "Some soldiers heard suspicious noises, but it's probably nothing. Colonel Phillips is keeping an eye on the situation though."

"Good… so what's the mission?"

Steve flung an arm around his lover's shoulder, "Simple reconnaissance. Also known as you giving me a heart attack by scurrying up trees without any regard to his safety!"

"Says you! I swear you've spent half of your life trying to give me grey hairs! Besides, how else am I supposed to get a good vantage point in the woods?! The trees are the highest things out there!"

"Well, you could at least not leap off the branches when we're done. You're going to hurt yourself one of these days!"

Bucky shook his head and sighed, "Oh, how the tables have turned punk!"

"Jerk."

…

The mission went off without a hitch… sort of.

The Howling Commandos managed to gather intel on the movements of a large number of Hydra agents. The only problem was, that a few members of this large group wandered a bit too close to the team… they didn't last long, but thankfully, they weren't quick enough to inform the rest of their group.

The real problem occurred when they arrived back at the camp.

Upon arrival, the group instantly spotted a large crowd gathering around Howard's personal lab. Steve marched over, a frown etched onto his face. "What's going on? Where's Colonel Phillips?"

The man in question pushed his way through the crowd and silently urged the surrounding soldiers to move away from the door as he took a hold of Steve's elbow, leading him (and therefore the rest of the commandos) away from the lab. "Stark's definitely up to something…" the older man began, "… A little over an hour ago, one of the soldiers walked past Stark's lab and thought he heard a baby cry."

"Is he sure?"

"Oh yes. Apparently, before he shipped out, his wife gave birth to a little boy…. The sound if very distinctive."

Bucky, who had moved to stand next to his lover, shook his head. "So…. Stark's hiding a baby in that lab?"

Before anyone could answer, Bucky continued, "You know what, I'm not even surprised…. Howard's reputation for seducing dames is legendary. One of them probably decided not to take any of his crap and dumped the baby on his doorstep."

Steve sighed wearily, "We would have heard something earlier then…. I mean, babies aren't quiet. And where has he been getting supplies from then, you know, food and clothes… diapers? Howard's been acting weird for a little under a year now…. And there have been no signs of a baby until now!"

"Maybe the woman stayed with him for nine months…. To help keep the baby a secret, you know?"

Dugan slapped Bucky on his back and laughed, "And no-one saw her? Come on Barnes, we would have noticed either a woman out of uniform walking around, or Howard carrying a bunch of skirts to his lab!"

Phillips nodded in agreement, "He's right Barnes. There's been no sign of any other women, except Agent Carter in this camp… aside from the odd friend here and there that the soldiers pick up at the local villages and towns.

"Maybe the soldier heard a recording or something?" Steve queried, frowning in thought.

At the moment, Agent Carter joined the group, therefore over-hearing the last sentence. "We don't think so…" she interrupted, "… Before you arrived, both Colonel Phillips and I heard the crying…. It definitely didn't sound like a recording, which is probably why there were so many soldiers gathered around the lab. It only really stopped a few minutes ago."

Steve was silent for a few moments, before nodding. "Well, let's find out what Howard's hiding then…" He marched over to the lab, closely followed by the commandos as he knocked on the door. "Howard? Howard, what's going on? Howard?"

There was the sound of things being knocked over inside the lab, before something began to make a wailing noise. Steve raised his fist to knock again, but before he could, something banged against the door on the other side.

"Steve!" Howard yelled through the door, "Hey buddy! Sorry, but I'm…. a tiny bit busy at the moment! Maybe we can talk later?!"

"Busy with what? The baby?"

"… B-baby? I have no idea what you're talking about!"

Steve ducked his head for a moment, as though praying for patience before taking a step back. "Howard… move away from the door."

"… Why?"

"Because I'm going to kick the door down, and I'm sure you don't want a broken nose."

"No! Steve, wai- "

It was too late.

Using only part of his strength, Steve kicked the door down, making sure that it only fell to the floor, instead of flying across the room. He and Bucky were the first two into the room and what they saw, stopped them in their tracks.

Bucky sighed and shook his head, "Jesus, I hoped that it wasn't true…. Howard Stark has pro-created!"

Glaring at the young man, desperately rocking the crying baby in his arms, Howard tried to think of an excuse. "It's not mine I swear! I-I'm babysitting!"

Steve took a step closer, "You sure about that Howard?"

Agent Carter and Colonel Phillips pushed their way into the lab, the latter's face flushing an angry red when he saw what Howard had in his arms. "STARK! What the hell is going on?! This isn't a goddamn nursery!"

Howard frantically tried to use the same excuse, but Colonel Phillips wasn't having any of it. "No! I don't want to hear it! Where did that baby come from Stark? And don't give me any of that same bullshit as before! The truth… NOW!"

For a few minutes, the only thing that could be heard was the sound of the baby crying, until Howard sighed and gently placed the baby in a startled Steve's arms.

"It's his…" Howard explained, gesturing to Steve, "… it's his baby."

Steve was shocked into silence, but Bucky couldn't help but scoff. "I swear, I think Steve breaks out into a rash whenever he gets close to a pretty girl…. There's no way this kid is his."

"Then how the hell did the Star-Spangled man with a plan father a child when he's as queer as a three-dollar bill?!"

Howard rubbed his hands together nervously before answering, "I may have played God just a little… he's a clone. You see, I was curious as to whether or not any child of Steve's would also show evidence of having the serum in them. Sadly, it looks like this one might be… defective. I-I mean, from what I can tell- "

"- whoa, whoa, whoa!" Bucky interrupted, "Did you just say he was defective?!"

"W-Well y-yes! You see, the serum affects every part of the human body, so there was no reason why the offspring of Steve wouldn't have the same characteristics… but I really should have expected this."

Peggy frowned, "And why is that?"

"Well… it's not purely Steve's child. It's Bucky's as well."

"What?!"

"You see, I combined both of their blood samples in order to get two donors that have been injected with the serum…. Well, a version of it anyway. I won't bore you to death with all the science, but nine months later, he was ready!"

At the mention of having the serum in his own bloodstream, Bucky flinched, "Great… thanks for that. So, he's mine as well?"

Noticing a pre-made bottle of milk on one of the counters, Bucky grabbed it and removed the still-crying baby from Steve's arms, then proceeding to feed the infant.

Silence…. From everyone.

"Ummmm Barnes?" Howard frowned, "What are you doing?"

"I'm holding him, what the hell do you think I'm doing?! Jesus, have you even fed him?"

"I was about to! It's not my fault the Captain then decided to kick the bloody door down!"

"God forbid the day you breed…" Bucky growled as the bottle was quickly consumed. Gently, he rearranged the baby so he could burp, cooing in an attempt to sooth the infant.

The baby's head lolled back and forth as Bucky rearranged him again and Bucky couldn't help grin. This kid was definitely Steve's; the blonde hair and blue eyes supported this… although the eye colour could change. If Bucky looked closely enough, brown flecks were present in those big blue eyes.

As Colonel Phillips was giving Howards the dressing down of his life, Bucky was joined by Steve and Peggy, who smiled as the baby stared up at them all.

"I'm sure we can find a nice home for him in the nearby village. There are a lot of couples who are willing to adopt."

Both the men turned to her in shock.

"Give him up?" Steve exclaimed, "Peggy, he's our kid!"

Peggy shook her head sympathetically, "You two are lucky enough to have found love and still be allowed to continue. I mean, if Colonel Phillip's kid wasn't… you know, you may not have been so lucky. But if you start raising a kid, then people outside of this group may raise the alarm. Then you'll all be separated from each other!"

"Let them try it…" Bucky growled, "… look, if we're careful and keep him out of the public eye as much as possible, then we'll be alright. We're never in the same place long enough for anyone to notice anything except the fact we'd saved them!"

"Precisely! What kind of a life is that?! He needs a stable home… a safe home, he can't grow up surrounded by war! Steve, you must understand where I'm coming from here!"

Steve was torn.

On the one hand, he could understand why Peggy was reluctant… but when he looked over at Bucky (who was holding his child for God's sake), he couldn't do it. Bucky looked so lost, so upset by the prospect of having to give up the child he had only known for a few minutes.

He sighed and gently removed the baby from Bucky's arms, his heart clenching as Bucky briefly resisted before biting his lip and relinquishing the child.

"What do you want to call him?" he asked gently, smirking as Bucky practically sighed in relief, a big beaming grin appearing on his face.

"I kinda wanna call him… Oliver. Don't ask me why, I just do!"

Steve nodded and glanced at the commandos, who had been watching the scene from the lab doorway. "See if you guys can find a crib and other baby stuff from the village… we've got work to do."

In his arms, the baby stared up at him, before breaking out in a toothless smile that Steve couldn't help but reciprocate.

How hard could this be?

…..

"I don't like this Rogers…" stated Colonel Phillips as they strode through the camp, ignoring the staring and shocked whispering of the other soldiers.

Seeing Captain America holding a baby must have been a surprise after all.

Steve nodded, but before he could say anything, the Colonel continued, "- but I know you're too damn stubborn in order for me to change your mind, so listen to me!" The Colonel thrusted a finger in Steve's face, "If anyone even gets the slightest hint that the kid is yours and Barnes, created by a nutso scientist, and that you and Barnes are shacking it up in your little tent… I will not be able to help you, understand?"

"I understand Sir… what's going to happen to Howard?"

Colonel Phillips sighed and glanced back at the lab. "He's going to be under supervision from now on. I don't need him playing God every time he get's a little bored, not when I have to focus on fighting a war! I don't care what he thinks about this latest development, I don't need any more kids running around."

Before Steve could say anything else, their attention was grabbed by Morita and Dernier rushing past with a crib in their arms. This also caught the Colonel's attention as he stared after them for a few seconds, before shaking his head.

"I don't want to know."

He marched away towards the command tent, dodging Dugan who was carrying a large box in the same direction as the other two.

Steve couldn't' help but smile as Falsworth followed on close behind with another, much smaller, box in his arms. Glancing down at Oliver, Steve grinned… he couldn't believe that he was doing this, not after falling into a relationship with Bucky.

Steve never imagined a life without him, even when they were simply friends, and when they did take that big steps, their dreams for the future never included a child…. No matter how much they may have wanted one.

"Hey Punk!" yelled a voice from behind him.

Steve span around and beamed at Bucky, who was striding closer.

"Dugan and the other managed to get some pretty sweet deals from a little old lady whose children are all grown up…." Bucky beamed, "… She seemed grateful that we were protecting her village those 'Nazi fucks', to use her exact wording. We got her whole life story… apparently, she lived in in Berlin all her life, but when Hitler started transporting all of the Jewish people to the camps, she quickly moved away, along with all her belongings. She's a smart, old cookie."

As Gabe pushed past with yet another box, Steve frowned, "How much did she give them?"

"Everything…" Bucky held out his arms for Steve to transfer the baby over, "… clothes, toys, a crib, bottles, blankets… everything that she still had from when her youngest was still a tot. Good thing too, otherwise this would have cost us a fortune. We're stocked up until the kid turns at least eight judging by how much was in those boxes. All we really have to buy is food…"

They began to walk over to where the commandos were depositing the boxes, just as Oliver began to wail again.

Steve frowned in concern, "He's not hungry again is he? Because I don't think Howard is in the best of moods for us to be borrowing his hot water supply."

Shaking his head in confusion, Bucky sighed. "He shouldn't be… it was only an hour ago that I feed him the last time." He lifted Oliver up and sniffed cautiously before gasping for a breath of fresh air, "I think I found a job for Captain America."

He handed Oliver back over to Steve and ducked back into their shared tent. Steve sniffed and instantly regretted it… then panic set in.

He had no idea how to change a diaper.

"Steve?"

With Oliver's wails growing even louder, it was no surprise that it had attracted the attention of Agent Carter.

"Dare I ask what the matter is?"

Steve glanced at Oliver and then back at Peggy, "B-Bucky said that Oli needed a changing?"

"And left you to it… clever man." Chuckled Peggy, but noticing the panicked look on her friend's face, she smiled sympathetically, "Come on, I'll show you what to do…. And then when Oliver needs another change, then you can show Sergeant Barnes how to do it."

Steve smirked, "Is it wrong to say that I'm looking forward to that conversation?"

"No… think of it as revenge."


	3. Ian Barton

Alright, so I know that some people have read the beginning of this series before, but I thought that it needed a re-write, with new chapters and storylines ?

So please read, review and enjoy.

…

"…Clint."

"Noooooo…."

"Clint, Lucky's barking at something."

"…Not breakfast time yet."

"CLINT!"

Clint shot into a seat position, almost knocking Phil to one side as he registered the tense tone in Phil's voice. "What! What!"

Phil glared at him, "I've been shouting at you for the past ten minutes, are your hearings aids turned up?"

"I sleep deep, you know that…" Clint frowned when he heard Lucky barking near the front door, "… what's wrong with him?"

"That's what I've been trying to tell you!" Phil hissed, his voice serious and his gun already in his hands, "Something's wrong."

Clint slowly got up from the bed, grabbing his own gun from the nightstand and edging over to the front door, where Lucky was bouncing up at the door handle. It was only when he got closer, that he realised the barks didn't sound threatening, in fact they sounded more excited.

"Useless guard dog." Clint griped, using his foot to direct Lucky in another direction, away from the front door.

As soon as he opened the front door however, he heard a different sound. Glancing down at his feet, he yelped and took a step back at the sight.

Lying in a cardboard box, wrapped up in a tatty purple blanket, was a whimpering baby, tears building in green eyes.

"Shit…" Clint muttered, kneeling down and lifting the baby into his arms, glancing up and down the corridor to see if anyone was nearby.

Nothing.

"Shit, shit, shit…" He slowly closed the door, hearing the bedroom door shut as Phil entered the living room.

"Clint? What was Lucky barking- "

Clint turned around and Phil went slightly pale at the sight of the baby.

"- at?"

Knowing what Phil must be thinking, Clint started to panic. "It's not mine, I swear!" he blurted out, "I haven't slept with a woman since…. Well, Nat all those years ago." He tried to give his husband a reassuring smile, "It's not mine."

"Have you read the note?"

"Huh?"

Phil gestured down at a piece of paper that was pinned onto the purple blanket, "The note."

Carefully handing the baby over (ignoring the flush he felt on his cheeks at the sight of his husband holding the bundle), Clint removed the note and unfolded it, groaning at the sight of the familiar hand-writing.

"It's Barney."

Phil groaned as well, knowing all about Barney's reputation. "Let me guess… he knocked up a random girl and doesn't want to take responsibility for that?"

"Yeah…." Clint scanned the letter, "… that's the gist of it. Hey bro…. got into trouble…. Gorgeous women…. Things happened…. Out pops baby…. Not dad-material…. Here you go…signing over custody… Barney."

Attached to the letter, was a tattered form that already had two signatures on.

"He's already signed the kid over…" Clint exclaimed in shock, "… Signed the kid over and then dumped him in on our doorstep."

Phil winced in sympathy, gently rocking the baby as it started to whine slightly, "Does… does he have a name?"

Scanning over the official-looking documents, Clint quickly found the name. "Ian… Ian Barton."

Knowing that his husband still seemed to be in shock, Phil gently led the other man to the sofa (shooing Lucky away) and placing Ian back into Clint's arms. Clint almost unconsciously started to rock the baby, staring at the wall in shock.

With the baby slightly calmer, Phil made his way back into the bedroom, grabbing his phone and giving Nick a ring.

"Director…" he sighed, "… we have a situation."

…

"Are you sure Nick can even deal with this?" Clint asked as they strode through the corridors of SHIELD headquarters, "I didn't think illegal adoption was part of SHIELD's manifesto!"

"It's not…. But Nick owes me a favour and Barney signing over his paternal rights just isn't going to cut it. We need an official lawyer to oversee this."

"Wait…" Clint stopped in the middle of the hallway, "… You really want to keep him?"

Phil frowned, "Did you honestly think I would just dump him in an orphanage?"

"Well… we haven't exactly talked about children and- "

"- And we've been married for five years." Phil smirked, "Most couple would have at least two kids by now."

As the baby started to cry once again, Clint winced, "I don't think I could handle two."

As they walked through the corridors, they caught the attention of several agents, all of them turning to stare after the pair and the sobbing baby.

It wasn't unexpected that Natasha quickly appeared out of nowhere and blocked their path.

"I thought Sitwell was bullshitting me…" she admitted, staring at the baby, "… I must say Clint, you hid that well."

"Oh, ha ha. If you must know, my dumbass brother dumped him on my doorstep this morning, signing over his parental rights to me…. Wanna hold him?"

Before Natasha could say anything (including the likely curse words that were threatening to come out at the mention of Barney), Clint handed the baby over, making sure that her arms were holding the baby securely.

All went quiet.

"Oh of course the baby likes her…" Clint grumbled good-naturedly, "... he cries in his Uncle's arms, but not in the arms of a complete stranger?"

Natasha stuck her tongue out at him, bouncing the baby up and down in her arms before handing him back to Clint.

Thankfully, the baby remained silent.

"Come on Clint…" Phil sighed fondly, "… We need to see Nick."

….

"I can't fucking believe this…"

Clint winced at the tone of Nick's voice, even as his husband barely flinched, watching as Nick paced his office.

"… I let you two hook up and marry each other because you were professionals and there was no choice of pro-creation!" Nick gestured angrily at the baby, who was watching the whole scene with bemusement, "Look at that!"

Clint glanced down at the baby, "Well… technically he's my brothers'."

"And that's meant to make me feel better?!"

"No Sir."

Nick paced for a few more minutes, before spinning around and pointing a finger at Clint, "And he signed custody over to you?!"

"Yeah… I'm as shocked as you."

"And he just disappeared?!"

"Barney's good at that."

"And there's no chance of you just handing the kid over to an orphanage? Those lawyers' Stark likes will probably take him! They're looking into that!"

Here, Clint and Phil glanced at one another, silently communicating as to what to tell Nick.

Judging by the weary sigh, Nick already knew what they were going to say.

"You're keeping him."

"Yes Sir." This time, it was Phil who answered, "But Barney's method isn't entirely legal and- "

"- and you want me to but a few heads together and make it legal for you." Nick groaned, "Have I mentioned how much I detest your brother Barton?"

"Probably not as much as I do Sir."

There were a few tense moments of silence, before Nick waved his hand. "Fine. Leave the paperwork with me and I'll get the legal team on it, now…" he gave the pair a fond look, "… now, I think you two had better get some baby supplies. SHIELD isn't paying for that."

"Well technically- "

"- don't you 'technically' me Phil."


	4. Sebastian Parker Wilson

Alright, so I know that some people have read the beginning of this series before, but I thought that it needed a re-write, with new chapters and storylines ?

So please read, review and enjoy.

…

"I-is- is that- "

Nick nodded, staring at the tiny figure who was screaming on the examination table, "Weapon X's new project."

"… Which is?"

Silently, Nick handed some paperwork over to the skinny young man beside him, "Cloning. It appears as though Weapon X found some old papers of Howard Stark's and wanted a little clone baby of their own. Thankfully they've only been successful once, and that's the result."

19-year-old Peter Parker glanced over to Nick and frowned, "And…. Whose DNA did they use?"

"… Your boyfriends'"

Feeling as though all the air had left his body in one shot, Peter took a shaky step back. "Wade? They used Wade's DNA?"

"Weapon X are responsible for what he is now… it makes sense that they'd keep something of his."

"…. So, he's a perfect clone?"

Nick chuckled at this, "Stark couldn't even manage that… no, someone else's DNA was mixed in as well." He turned to Peter and raised an eyebrow, "Bled at any fights recently?"

"What? No w- "He paused, suddenly remembering a fight around seven months ago with Doctor Octopus, where one of the villains' tentacles scratched his arm. It was only when he got home that he even realised that he was injured, "…. Yeah… yeah maybe."

"Right… well he's half yours as well."

Without even looking, Nick grabbed Peter's arm in order to stop the younger man from falling to the ground in a dead faint.

"I know…" he continued, "… I was shocked as well, but our scientists are sure. It's your kid."

Peter had gone really pale, supporting himself against Nick as he stared at the screaming baby, "I'm nineteen… I'm too young to be a Dad, I'm nineteen."

"You're not the issue."

When Peter turned and frowned at Nick, the older man sighed. "You know as well as I do that Deadpool is not the best example of 'model parent'…. To be honest, I'm not sure whether we should hand the baby over to yourselves."

Before Peter could protests, Nick held up his hand, stopping him in his tracks. "However, if we're willing to let Stark's little robotic experiment go unchallenged, I don't see why we can't give you a chance…. One chance. As soon as he or you slip up, then that's it."

"R-really?"

"Yeah, yeah… Agent Coulson here will help you get the supplies and yes Mister Parker, SHIELD will pay for them this once."

Peter was clearly still in shock, a small smile on his face as the SHIELD nurse walked out of the other room and made her way over, a screaming baby still in her arms.

"Well…" she addressed Peter, a soft smile on her face, "… you'll be happy to know that his weight is healthy for his size, a little lower that what we were expecting, but still healthy. There are no other problems that we can see, no… surprises from Weapon X, and as you can hear, he had a healthy pair of lungs."

"I-I don't he's stopped to breathe since I got here."

The nurse chuckled, gently handing the baby over, directing Peter as to where to put his hands and arms. "There we go…" she cooed, stroking a finger over the baby's flushed cheek, "… in Daddy's arms now. No more scary Doctors or nurses."

To Peter's surprise, the baby seemed to take this into account, his cries slowly settling down until only a soft whimpering could be heard. He then opened up his eyes and stared up at Peter, a sulky look on his face.

Peter instantly fell in love.

"Mister Parker?"

Peter span around to see another SHIELD agent standing there, a familiar one… although the baby attached to him in a carrier was a new feature.

"You're a Dad?" he exclaimed in shock, staring at the sleeping baby that was strapped securely to Agent Coulson's chest.

Agent Coulson wasn't even slightly phased, merely holding up a finger to his lips to indicate that Peter should keep it down, before answering the question. "He's a relatively new addition…. Meet Ian."

Ian simply snuffled in his sleep and wriggled closer to his Dad, mouth open slightly.

"How old is he?"

"Just under six months… you've got all the fun nights ahead of you."

Yeah… judging by the sulky look on his own son's face, the baby was not going to make it easy for him.

"So, what have you decided to call him?"

Startled at Agent Coulson's question, Peter glanced down at his son again, his mind having gone blank. "I… I have no idea."

"… Maybe a conversation with Mister Wilson will help?"

"Y-Yeah, maybe."

Agent Coulson gave him a sympathetic look, before gesturing for Peter to follow him. "Don't worry, it will get easier…" he reassured the younger man, remembering his own worries when Ian first showed up, "… you just need to take it one step at a time."

"… Any tips?"

"You will be stressed… and the first six months are the hardest, but it'll be worth it. I promise."

…..

"Wade?" Peter cautiously made his way further into the apartment, "Wade, you in?"

"Baby boy!" Wade came charging in from the living room, arms already outstretched to wrap Peter up in a spine-cracking hug… only to stop in his tracks, his eyes wide as he stared at the baby.

"You were pregnant?! Did I universe jump again?!"

He then paused, glancing to his right, "Shut up Yellow, it is totally possible! Strange's boyfriend is pregnant in this universe, isn't he?"

"Who's Stra- Nevermind." Peter stepped closer, interrupting Wade mid-rant about different universes and stupid authors who just 'have to re-write everything'. "Wade, we need to talk."

Wade visibly became nervous at this, his fingers tugging at his clothes in nerves. "A-are you breaking up with me?"

"What?!"

The scarred man gestured at the baby, "It's your kid… one that you had with some gorgeous, non-scarred girl, and you want to start a relationship with her, I get that! Honestly!"

"Wade, Wade, no!"

Peter rushed over and pulled his boyfriend into a hug, being careful not to crush the baby in between the two of them. "I have never and will never, cheat on you!" he reassured the other man, making sure Wade was looking him in the eye, "The baby… the baby is because of something else."

Tilting his head to one side, Wade frowned in confusion, allowing himself to be lead back to the sofa, with Peter sitting next to him, the baby still sleeping in his arms.

"He's… he's yours."

Now it was Wade's turn to panic. "I didn't cheat! Whoever the woman is who told you that he's mine, she's a liar! A liar I tell you!"

"Wade relax!"

"I can't relax! Not when that lying bitch is out there!"

"WADE!"

Peter's raised voice finally seemed to get through to Wade, as he quickly settled down, eyes wide as he stared at the younger man.

"Wade… it was Weapon X."

"… What?"

Peter took a deep breath, "Weapon X had some of your DNA… and then they stole some of mine from a crime scene and then… bang, science baby."

There was silence for a few moments, as Wade glanced between Peter and the baby…. Peter and the baby… Peter and the baby.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!"

"Wade!"

Wade had leaped to his feet and started pacing the room, and if he had any hair, he'd be tugging at it furiously. "Those bastards…. Those absolute and utter bastards!"

At the sudden yell, the baby started crying once again, his tiny face scrunched up as tears streamed down his face.

"…. This… this is going to be a long night."

…

Eventually, Wade calmed down… mind you, it was only when the SHIELD agents showed up with all the baby supplies and Wade was too excited to be angry.

Once everything was in the spare room, ready to be assembled (and wasn't that going to be a fun job), the pair sat back down on the sofa.

"So…" Peter began, finding himself exhausted despite not doing anything, "… any idea what to call him?"

"He doesn't have a name already…. Shut up Yellow, I'm not calling him Francis!"

"No… I was hoping we could make that decision together?"

Wade nodded eagerly, shuffling forwards. "How about Weasel? He'd be honoured."

"… Don't get me wrong, I like your best friend, but not enough to name a kid after him."

At Wade's pout, Peter rolled his eyes and sighed. "Alright… maybe as a middle name."

"But I wanted Ben to be the middle name?"

At this frank confession, Peter felt the breath leave his murder, his eyes widening in shock as he stared at his boyfriend. "What?"

Wade shuffled from side to side, his fingers twisting together in nervousness. "You looked up to your Uncle Ben… I thought it would be nice?"

"Yeah… yeah that's…" Peter paused, suddenly lunging forwards and pulling Wade into a kiss, smirking into it at Wade's muffled exclamation of surprise. When they pulled away from one another, Peter beamed and continued with what he was saying, "That's probably the nicest thing you've ever said."

"… Do I get sexy times as a reward?"

"Build the cot first and I'll think about it."

"Done!"

….

"Sebastian."

Peter glanced up, lifting his head off of Wade's chest, a confused frown on his face. "Huh?"

"The kid's name… Sebastian Ben Parker-Wilson."

"… Where did you pull Sebastian out of?"

"For Sebastian Stan! The hottest actor ever… next to Ryan Reynold of course."

"Sebastian who?"

"You'll find out soon… if the author actually writes this AU a bit quicker."

"… Sebastian it is."


	5. Fenrir Thorson

Alright, so I know that some people have read the beginning of this series before, but I thought that it needed a re-write, with new chapters and storylines ?

So please read, review and enjoy.

…

"Thor!"

When there wasn't any response, Loki's fingers tightened on the blankets, almost ripping them as he sat up and shrieked, "THOR!"

A young face peered into the Master bedroom, a frown on their face. "Mummy? Mummy, what's wrong?"

"Get Daddy Sleipnir!" Loki ordered his oldest, "GO!"

The child didn't hesitate, racing down the corridor, the sound of hooves indicating that he'd transformed into his eight-legged form.

Good, it was faster that way.

Knowing that help was on his way, Loki lay back against the blankets, trying to calm his breathing. He'd done this twice before, surely this couldn't be harder? And the second time was twins, so this should be easy.

It didn't feel that way.

"Loki! Loki!"

Thor came rushing into the room, still sweaty from training as Sleipnir, Jörmungandr and Hel followed on behind, the twins looking terrified at the sight of their Mummy in pain.

Thor settled onto the bed next to Loki, reaching for his hand and gripping it tightly just as a low whine started to build in his husband's throat. The larger man felt his knuckles crack as Loki's hand tightened on his, the whine building into a sharp cry.

"Go to your Grandparents…" Thor ordered his other children, knowing that they shouldn't see this, "… GO!"

Hel and Jörmungandr seemed very reluctant to leave, but Sleipnir soon tugged them away, leaving Loki and Thor alone.

"Breathe my love." Thor murmured, kissing Loki's sweaty forehead, "You have done this before, you can do it again."

Loki glared at him.

"Breathe? Are you jesting with me?" he snarled, "I am breathing. I am barely able to breathe around this boars-head of a tumour growing inside of me, that is coming out no matter! A tumour that you put in me!"

"Um- "

There was no point in trying to say anything, not with Loki getting more and more annoyed. "This is your fault!" he snapped, sparks erupting from his fingertips, "You are never touching me again, ever! I think it would be just perfect if, after this happens, we never do this again until you know how much this hurts!"

"You have been through this many times… it has not killed you before."

"Then this might be the last time!" Loki yelled, as another contraction gripped him, and he doubled over, twisting Thor's hand tight in his until Thor winced. As the grip eased, Loki smiled tightly at Thor. "That, is a small amount of just how much I hurt right now. If you ever think of doing this to me again, I- "

Thor was relieved when his Mother walked in before Loki could finish that sentence.

"Is he close?" he asked desperately.

"I will just take a look, with your permission Loki?"

When Loki nodded, a flush on his face, Queen Frigga settled in at the end of the bed, nudging the sheet up to examine Loki. "You're getting there…" She stated softly, "… You're almost completely dilated, and you'll be able to start pushing soon… maybe in the next hour."

"An hour?!" Loki's head fell back against the pillow, "I don't know if I can do this for another hour!"

"But you've done this befo- "

If looks could kill, Thor would be dead from the glare Loki shot at him…. However, it was ruined by the sharp shriek he let out as another contraction seized him, prompting Loki to start panting desperately, clinging to Thor.

"Almost there," Frigga murmured, "Another few good contractions like that and I believe you will be fully- "

"AAAHHHH!"

Thor snuck in closer, arm around Loki's shoulders as he kissed his husband's cheek. He smoothed back sweat-soaked dark hair. He didn't try to say anything, just winced at his mother until she got the silent hint and left the room, pulling the door closed behind her.

Then Thor waited, holding Loki through the next contraction, feeling the shudder as a sob broke free.

"I can't do it," Loki whimpered, "Can't do it…. Why do I keep letting you do this to me!"

"It is a little pain, and then you will have another gorgeous child and- "

"It is not just a little pain Thor!" Loki glared at him, breath catching as another contraction shook him, "I'm being ripped apart. Torn. Shredded. I never want you to touch me again!"

"At all?"

Loki shuddered, "At all or I will hex you to oblivion!"

Wisely, Thor dropped the subject matter… it was obviously a poor tactic in calming his husband down.

Every time Loki went through this, it was never easy. Strange cravings to swollen feet to complaining about how often he had to relieve himself (which was often). When Thor stroked Loki's mid-section, telling him just how radiant he was, Loki complained that he was as large as a bilgesnipe.

As his due date approached, Loki had become snappish, arguing with everything Thor said (not that that was any different) and refusing to let himself be seen unclothed.

And now this.

Thor rubbed Loki's back, gripping his hand tightly as another contraction engulfed him, Loki's shriek making Thor's gut hurt because he couldn't help. "I am sorry..." he murmured.

"You'd better be sorry!" Loki snapped, "This is all your fault. If you hadn't- "

"- allowed myself to be lured into your bed once again?" Thor sighed fondly, hand still slow over the skin bared by the gap in the tunic. "Had you over and over again until you screamed my name? Waited until you begged before- "

Loki went silent, gasping, something keening in the sound as tears streamed down his cheeks. "Odin's beard!" he whined, "It's – I'm being ripped apart. It hurts!"

"… Maybe I should go and get Mother."

"You are not going anywhere!" Loki's hand tightened on Thor's refusing to let him move, "You started this, and you will see the end of it."

"Yes, my love… MOTHER!"

Frigga must have been waiting, because she rushed in, closing the door behind her for privacy. As she sat down at the end of the bed, she smiled. "You're almost there Loki, you just need to push."

"Push…. Can't we just magic them out?"

"No Loki…" Frigga became firm, "… magic around children this young, is dangerous and it is too late anyway. Your child is in the birth canal, so you need to push and let your body begin to heal from the process."

"You're going to be alright…" Thor murmured, joining in with his mother, wrapping both arms around Loki and pulling him in close, "And I want to meet our next child, Sleipnir, Jor and Hel want to meet their baby sibling. Don't you?"

Loki swallowed hard and nodded slowly.

"Then push."

With a scream that threatened to shatter glass, Loki pushed.

"There we go…" Frigga muttered encouragingly, "The baby is crowning. Just a few more pushes like that- "

"- AAAAAHHHHHH!"

Thor groaned when Loki's hand tightened on his thigh, fingers biting hard as he doubled over, pushing because he couldn't seem to not do it. Loki panted when it was done, tears streaming down his face, clear panic written in his silver eyes.

"All your fault, all your fault." Loki kept chanting under his breath, like a mantra.

Thor caught his head and turned Loki to face him, leaning in, forehead to forehead. "We started this together my love, we're going to finish it together," he said softly, "I'm here and if I could take this pain, I would."

"You can have the next one!"

"One more time Loki." Frigga smiled.

"One more time," Thor echoed, "Deep breath my love. Say whatever you wish, but you need to push, and it will all be over."

Loki's jaw tightened, and his gaze darkened. He sucked in a deep breath, his eyes closing as he screamed, "THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!" The words ended on a low scream, then a groan, and Loki slumped back, pale skin even paler, lips bloodless.

"Loki?" Thor leaned over him.

"… I hate you."

At the end of the bed, a wail split the silence as Frigga got to her feet, "He may need a bit of a clean, but I think you two might wish some time to say hello."

"He?"

"Another son my boys. Another son."

Thor helped prop Loki up in the bed, waiting while their Mother placed their son in Loki's arms. A slow smile started as Loki lightly traced the infant's features, not at all bothered by the screaming of the child, "Another son." Loki sounded awed by the fact.

"He's perfect," Thor told him, "Just like you."

Loki bent to press a light kiss to the baby's forehead, smiling when the little one stopped crying at the touch. "That's right, you know your Mummy, don't you Fenrir," Loki murmured.

"Fenrir?" Thor frowned, "Loki, I thought- "

"- Your bear the child, and then you name the child." Loki stated mildly

Thor knew that tone and backed down. There was a big reason why he wasn't carrying the children, but now wasn't the time to remind Loki of that. Not when his husband was smiling so sweetly at their child, cooing as if he'd never been screaming obscenities just moments before.

Loki leaned into Thor's touch, and the three settled in, a comfortable family. Lightly touching the pale fuzz on the baby's head, Thor sighed. "Does this mean I am forgiven?"

"Maybe… where are the rest of the children? I want them to meet their new brother."

"Of course…. SLEIPNIR! JOR! HEL!"

"Thor! No need to shout!"

Their other children rushed into the room, clambering onto the bed or onto Thor's lap in order to get a good luck at the baby.

Hel's skeletal hand reached out, gently brushing against Fenrir's cheek. "Can I hold him Mummy?" she eventually asked.

"When your Grandmother has cleaned him yes."

"What's his name?" Sleipnir this time.

"Fenrir."

It was at this moment, that Fenrir opened his eyes for the first time… and Loki knew he'd gone pale at the sight.

All of his children had unique properties. Sleipnir could shapeshift into an eight-legged horse, despite looking 'normal'. Jor had snake-like eyes that reflected his own shapeshifting powers and Hel… Hel was half dead, half living.

When he saw the blonde hair, he hoped this child would be different, a child that Odin would accept… the red eyes seemed to indicate that this wouldn't be the case.

"Why… why does he have red eyes?" Thor asked, clear nerves in his voice.

"I-I-I- "

"- Loki?" Frigga re-entered the room, Odin in tow, "Is everything alright?"

Noticing the look on her sons' faces, she frowned in concern and stepped closer, "What's the- "When she spotted Fenrir's eyes, she stopped in her tracks, "… Gorgeous." She eventually decided, straightening up and sending her son a reassuring smile, "Don't you think so my King?"

Odin clearly did not think so… in fact, it looked as though Odin was seconds away from exploding.

Until a warning look from his wife stopped him in his tracks.

"Incredible…" he eventually forced out, before taking a deep breath and trying to sound more believable, "… you should be very proud Loki. Another strong son to carry on the royal line."

Loki wasn't entirely happy with the statement or the forced tone, but he simply nodded in thanks and gave his Father a soft smile, before turning his attention back to Fenrir.

Everyone else loved his son… why should he care what one old man thought?


	6. Edwin Stark

Alright, so I know that some people have read the beginning of this series before, but I thought that it needed a re-write, with new chapters and storylines ?

So please read, review and enjoy.

…

"Anthony?"

Tony yelped and span around, holding his arms out wide as some sort of shield, "Jarvis! Love of my life! The perfect man… what are you doing down here?"

Raising an eyebrow, Jarvis took a step closer, a clipboard in his arms. "Mister Stane is requesting a meeting with you regarding the new weapon designs… and the board requires your signature."

"… I'm sure this is Pepper's job. Or did you swap places, and she's now my husband… wife?"

"Miss Potts has taken the day off for her birthday, remember?" Jarvis chuckled at the confused look on Tony's face, "Well, she did and yes, we got her something very nice for her birthday."

"Oh good, I would hate to think we were neglecting her."

"Hmmm… and can I know why my husband had spent weeks down here?"

Tony was practically quivering in excitement, "Okay, okay, he was meant to be a surprise, but he's almost ready, so- "

"- He?"

Moving to one side, Tony held out his arms and beamed, "Ta-da!"

Jarvis couldn't help but frown at the sight. He'd been created almost five years ago, when the old Stark butler, Edwin Jarvis, passed away after heart problems…. Tony had deeply cared for the man and created J.A.R.V.I.S, the AI in order to keep him company.

He'd been given a body a little over a year later and he and Tony were legally married another year later.

It was only natural that a child was the next step.

The baby on the table was beautiful… Jarvis used to believe that all babies looked the same, but this one…. This one was different.

"How long have you been- "

"- working on this?" Tony waved Jarvis closer, "Since our last anniversary. If it weren't for all the weapons design and meetings, he would have been finished a lot sooner. As it stands, he'll be up and running…. Well by tomorrow."

"…. I thought you forgot."

"About our anniversary? Never."

Jarvis narrowed his eyes at Tony, tilting his head to one side, until he came to a realisation and smirked. "Miss Potts told you, didn't she?"

"I'm offended that you would- "Tony stopped, and winced at the look on Jarvis's face, "- alright, she might have given me a few reminders, but I was planning this anyway, I swear!"

Chuckling softly, Jarvis his way over to the table and ran his fingers through the baby's hair. "You just couldn't resist giving him the Stark hair, hmmm?"

"Well, I gave him your gorgeous blue eyes, he had to have something of mine!"

At his husband's enthusiasm, Jarvis couldn't help but feel a little excited himself. "So… when were you going to… activate him?"

"Well… we can do it now if you want? I just need to transfer the new AI program over and we're good to go!"

Jarvis was excited for a short time, until a big question suddenly came to him. "Does Mister Stane know about this?"

"Nooooo, why? Should he?"

"Well he- "

"- He has nothing to do with the company… except as my heir one day, but what Stane doesn't know won't hurt him. He won't care."

Privately, Jarvis disagreed but he accepted Tony's view anyway and allowed himself to be pulled away, watching as Tony set up the rest of the equipment, preparing for the final process.

And then another thought occurred to him.

"Tony… have you set up a bedroom for him?"

Seconds away from pulling the switch, Tony stopped and winced. "I knew I forgot to do something…. Darling, love of my life would you- "

"- already on it." Jarvis interrupted fondly, pulling out his phone and tapping at the screen, before bringing it up to his ear, "I'll get some decorators here within the hour and they'll get everything painted. I'll also order the supplies we need."

"Are we going to need much?"

"Is he going to eat and pass waste like other babies."

"Ummmm…"

"Then yes, we will need a lot of supplies, including diapers, pacifiers, clothes and toys."

Wincing at Jarvis's stern tone, Tony sheepishly grinned. "I think we can hold this off for another few hours, right?"

"That might be for the best…" Leaning over, Jarvis kissed Tony, chuckling as Tony pulled him closer, "… have I said thank you for this?"

In a moment of uncharacteristic softness, Tony took a step back and beamed at his husband. "I saw how you were when we visited that children's hospital after the donation… you wanted this… right?" Suddenly, a flicker of panic flittered across his face, "You did want this, right? I didn't read that wrong?"

"No…" Jarvis kissed him again, "… you didn't get it wrong. Do you have a name for him?"

Tony shuffled nervously again at this, smoothing down his hair. "Well… I called you Jarvis…. I was thinking we could call him Edwin?"

Seeing that his husband was clearly nervous about this, Jarvis was quick to reassure him, placing gentle hands on the other man's shoulders. "I think… I think he would be honoured… confused but honoured."

"… I'll take that."

…..

Hours later, one of his spare bedrooms smelt heavily of paint and was full of things that he never thought he'd ever need.

How many soft toys did this kid need?

But Jarvis looked happy, and that was all that he needed.

"Alright…" he eventually decided, clapping his hands together, "… time for activation!"

"And you're sure you're ready for this?" Jarvis suddenly asked, a concerned look on his face, "Because I don't want you to be doing this if you're not sure."

Tony frowned at him for a moment for a short time, before a fond smile appeared on his face. "I wouldn't have done it unless I was sure…. I'm not the impulsive kind of guy."

At Jarvis's raised eyebrow and slight chuckled, Tony rolled his eyes and gently pushed the android away. "Alright, alright, maybe I'm a bit impulsive…. But honestly, I did think about this… for about a day before I decided I'd do it."

Sensing that Jarvis was still a little unsure, Tony shook his head fondly. "I'm ready for this…" he reassured the man, "… we're both ready for this."

"If you're sure- "

"- Quit your mothering Jarvis!" Tony grabbed the man's hand and dragged him towards the workshop, "Let's do this!"

….

Once the bright light disappeared from the room, Tony and Jarvis blinked frantically as piercing cries echoed off the walls.

"Oh my god it actually worked."

Jarvis quickly turned to Tony as they both rushed towards the baby, "You didn't think it would?"

"Well it worked for you, so all the maths was done on a smaller scale. I'm a genius, I knew it would work… probably."

The baby was clearly not happy with the new sensations on his skin, and the wails got even louder and he started to squirm uncomfortably.

"Okay, dress first, feed after…" Tony winced, frantically grabbing the diaper and onesie that Jarvis had had the good foresight to grab, "… Ummmm."

Rolling his eyes, Jarvis chuckled fondly, gently taking the two items from his husband. "Why don't you heat up the milk and I'll get him dressed and ready."

"Excellent idea!" Tony rushed towards the stairs, only to pause and glance back at Jarvis, "How- "

"- instructions are on the counter and pinned to the fridge."

"Love you!"

As Tony rushed back up to the main area of the house, Jarvis turned back to his son (and wasn't that a strange thought) and shook his head fondly. "That's your Dad…" he sighed, "…. Something to remember for when you're older… there are going to be times where it'll seem like he has his mind on around fifty other things, other than you… but he will always love you and I can guarantee, you will always be first in his mind."

Edwin stared up at him, the tears having stopped when Jarvis first started to talk, huffing slightly as Jarvis finished the last button on the onesie.

"He can be a hard man to like sometimes… but he is very easy to love."


	7. Grandparent Visit (Joey)

Alright, so I know that some people have read the beginning of this series before, but I thought that it needed a re-write, with new chapters and storylines ?

So please read, review and enjoy.

…

Turn your wounds into wisdom.

Yes, it was an Oprah Winfrey quote, but Matt felt like it was appropriate at that time. He winced as the dull ache from his latest wounds made themselves known.

The fact that Foggy had poked and prodded at them when he first came home probably didn't help.

Focusing his hearing on the cot that was beside their shared bed, he could hear the faint snuffling and breathing of their 6-month-old, Joseph. The heartbeat was steady, unconsciously syncing up with Foggy's as the morning sun started to peek through the bedroom window.

At the slight heat, Joey's heartbeat sped up slightly, indicating that he was seconds away from waking up. Wanting to stop any fussing before it even began, Matt slowly (so as not to wake Foggy) got out of bed, wincing as his ribs ached, and headed to the cot.

Matt winced as the dull ache from his latest wounds made themselves known. Thankfully, it was only bruises and he hadn't been out late, so Foggy wasn't too suspicious when he came home. Focusing his hearing on the cot that was by their shared bed, he could hear the faint snuffling and breathing of their baby boy, Joseph.

The heartbeat was steady, causing Matt to smile as he noticed how it synced up with Foggy's unconsciously. As he felt the slight heat of the sun through the bedroom window, Joey's heartbeat sped up slightly, which alerted Matt to the fact that the baby was waking up. Taking care not to wake Foggy, Matt slowly got out of bed, wincing more as his ribs ached.

He walked over to the cot, just as Joey's heartbeat indicated that he was now awake. "Hey baby boy…" greeted Matt, grinning as he heard the muscles in his son's face shift, indicating that he was smiling at the familiar voice, "…are you in a cheerful mood this morning?!"

"That makes one of us…" grumbled Foggy's voice from behind him, causing Matt to grin even wider as he felt gentle arms hug him from behind, "…aww, he's smiling!"

The pure excitement in his partner's voice could have made Matt's entire week. As Joey began to make displeased sounds, Foggy headed into the kitchen, muttering about heating up a bottle for the kid and preparing them breakfast.

Matt gently lifted his son out of the cot and, making sure to take Joey's teddy with them, he supported the baby in one hand and carefully made his way to the kitchen. Nothing in the apartment was ever moved, so Matt knew exactly where everything was at all times, meaning that he could leave his stick in the hallway.

Once in the kitchen, Matt made his way to Joey's highchair and quickly strapped the baby in. At first, Joey began to fuss, but once he had his trusted teddy bear (Jack) in his hands, Joey cheered up. The milk was quickly heated up and whilst Foggy was buttering up the toast, Matt helped his son have his breakfast.

"Oh Matt?"

Matt glanced up as he heard a plate placed in front of him and Foggy pull up a chair opposite him.

"You do remember that my parents are coming today right?"

"How could I forget?" Matt chuckled, "Your mum's been calling us every other day to remind us!"

"Hmmm, you'd think we were completely incompetent."

Matt smirked at this, "Well, I know one of us isn't." he teased, good-naturedly.

He could practically hear Foggy rolling his eyes as the man started to coo at their son, "Your Papa is so mean to me sometimes!"

Joey just squealed in delight, slapping his hands against the highchair table as Foggy chuckled happily, "See Matt, he agrees with me!"

Grinning as they all finished their breakfast, Matt let Foggy drag him into the bedroom so that they could get changed and attempt to wrestle Joey into some day-to-day clothes (and for a 6-month-old, he didn't half wriggle and writhe).

Once that was all done (and Joey was sulking slightly), they all made their way back into the living room where Joey was placed in his playpen.

"Yay paperwork…" Foggy grumbled, "… when can we set up our own law office again?"

"Not soon enough… we need to either break away from Landman and Zack or get a sugar daddy."

At the familiar word, Joey cocked his head to one side, indicating that he was listening to the conversation, his hands grasping at his favourite toys, the Octotunes Musical Toy and the Tinkle Crinkle Rattle toy, shaped like a caterpillar.

Noisy toys that made lot of musical sounds.

"Look at that…" Foggy gestured at their son and beamed, "… He recognises that word. I'm telling you Matty, he'll be saying Daddy before the month is out."

"He's not even seven months old yet Foggy, I think it'll be a while."

They spent the next few hours in relative silence, only breaking it to change Joey's diaper, give him another fee or put him down for a quick nap.

Three o'clock came around much quicker than what they expected, and the three were startled by a knock on the door. Thankfully, it was just quiet enough not to bother Joey, who turned his attention back to his toys as Foggy made his way to the door.

Almost as soon as he opened it, his mother burst through it, her arms outstretched for a hug.

"Frankie!" she cried, wrapping him up in her arms and ignoring her son's petulant mutters about being called 'Foggy'.

Unfortunately, the sudden noise of Anna Nelson shouting, caused Joey to burst into tears, sobbing loudly, leading to Matt dropping down onto the floor next to him in an attempt to soothe him.

Anna looked like she was about to cry herself as Mat eased himself to his feet, rocking back and forth as Joey's cries quietened down in sniffs and almost silent snuffles. "I'm so sorry…" she whispered, "… I completely forgot, I- "

"- Mom, mom…" Foggy interrupted, shaking his head and gently taking her hand, "… don't worry about it, you just made him jump slightly. Look, he's calming down right now."

Matt nodded in agreement, wanting to reassure Anna that everything was alright, especially as Joey appeared to have forgotten entirely about the incident. He could feel his son wriggling and twisting around in his grip, clearly recognising the familiar voices.

"Hello there, my little angel…" he heard Anna coo, as she walked closer and lifted Joey into her arms, "… and how are you?"

Definitely recognising the voice of his grandma, Joey beamed toothlessly and babbled eagerly, giggling as Anna started to bounce him up and down.

"Mom, please don't bounce him, he's just had his dinner!"

"Oh please..." Anna scoffed, "… I've raised a brood and trust me, this will do him no harm."

Foggy watched on, on truly relaxing when his Mother stopped. "Lucky… He's thrown up so much I think I'm immune to it."

"You're lucky…" Matt scowled, "… I don't think I'll ever get used to that smell."

Edward Nelson chuckled at this, lifting Joey into his own arms. "Clothespins. Trust me, they make all the difference in the world."

"Not with Matt, his sense of smell is… something else." Foggy patted Matt apologetically on the shoulder, his voice full of sympathy, "We've figured out that we had to use the diaper as a shield fairly early on."

Laughing and gesturing at her husband, Anna shook her head. "It took him ages to learn that. Every time he changed Frankie's diaper, he ended up covered in wee!"

Both Edward and Foggy blushed at this, with Foggy quickly clearing his throat and attempting to change the situation. "What's in the bag Mom? Brain bleach maybe?"

Anna was successfully distracted and beamed in excitement, practically diving for the bag in question. "Oh, you are going to love this!"

She reached into the bag and pulled out a red pair of dungarees, handing them over to Matt quickly.

"Now, I know they're a little big for him at the moment, but think how cute he's going to look!"

Foggy smiled at his Mother's enthusiasm, "That's great Mom… but he had loads of dungarees, what's special about these ones?"

Running his fingers over the soft fabric of the dungarees, Matt quickly realised why these ones were so unique, "Are these… justice scales?"

"Justice scales…" Foggy ran his own fingers over the hems of the dungarees, "… you know he won't be able to see these, right?"

Anna rolled her eyes, "Well duh. That's why I made sure they felt different to the rest of the cloth. He can feel them, like what Matt's doing!"

"Well…" Matt sent a smile in the direction of Anna, "… I'm sure he'll love them, thank you Anna."

"See Foggy, Matt knows how to be grateful."

Matt could practically hear Foggy's eyes rolling at this, as the shorter man leaned closer.

"See, I told you you were her favourite."

As Matt chuckled fondly, he could hear Joey laughing along as well, laughing just because his Dad was.

"Alright, alright…" Foggy groaned, "… enough with the cuteness already! Mother, I would have cooked, but I forgot… Chinese anyone?"


	8. Peas (Oliver)

Alright, so I know that some people have read the beginning of this series before, but I thought that it needed a re-write, with new chapters and storylines ?

So please read, review and enjoy.

…

"I swear to- Come on kiddo, it's not that bad!"

Bucky groaned lowly as Oliver turned his face away again, protesting loudly in the form of huffing and puffing.

"You can't have milk forever Oli!"

"Bucky?"

Bucky twisted around as Steve made his way across the camp towards them, "One day, I get to make the 'kill Hydra plans' and you get to stay here and make sure he actually eats." He complained, glaring at his sniggering lover, "Don't you laugh at me! C'mon Captain America, let's see you do any better!"

Smirking at the exasperation in Bucky's voice, Steve went to kneel by the 6-month-old, ruffling the blonde hair as Oliver beamed innocently up at him. "Hey buddy, why are you giving your Mummy such a hard time?" He then leaned back and grinned again, "Hey, is he sitting up on his own?"

"I swear to God Steve- "

"- when did he figure out how to do that?"

"…. This morning. Sitting on his own, in a pile dirt… now all we need is for him to eat!"

"What are you trying to feed him anyway?"

Holding up a spoonful of green mush, Bucky frowned, "Mushy peas… I thought he was ready for food that isn't milk, I mean he had some mushed-up fruit this morning and loved it!"

"… We have fruit?"

"Yeah, a couple of tons from the last raid… but that's not the point! I don't understand why's he's putting up such a fuss!"

"Well, maybe he doesn't like mushy peas…" Steve mused, "… Do we have any proper ones?"

"Yeah, I had to have some to mush them up after all… but it won't make a bloody difference will it?"

"Don't use language like that in front of the baby Bucks, and I'll show you the difference it'll make."

Steve rushed off to the supply tent before Bucky could even say anything in reply, forcing the other man to wait patiently…. And then a little less patiently as ten minutes ticked by. Eventually, Steve came rushing back, holding a small bowl of whole peas.

"Sorry, sorry…" he apologised, "... I had to wait for them to cool down enough." He knelt down in front of Oliver and smiled gently, "Now let's see if this works…" he cooed as he held up a spoonful of whole, cooked peas, small enough to be a sensible mouthful without being a choking risk.

As he watched beside Steve, Bucky rolled his eyes and scoffed. "He won't eat mushy peas, what makes you think- " he stopped in his tracks, his mouth opening in surprise as Oliver happily allowed his Papa to feed him, "- Wha- how?!"

"I hate mushy peas remember?" Steve chuckled, "However, whole ones are fine… it looks like our tastes are the same."

"Yeah, and I think it's weird with you! Peas are peas!"

As Steve laughed, Oliver started to giggle as well, finishing what he was eating and holding out his arms in a silent demand to be carried. Bucky was only too happy to oblige with the request, grinning as he lifted his son into his arms. "Okay… no mushy peas, we can work with that, can't we kiddo?"

The small family wandered over to the main cooking tent, which was one of the safest places in camp strangely enough, aside from Colonel Phillip's tent…. And he didn't appreciate being the resident babysitter. At least in the main cooking tent, there was always somebody there to watch over Oliver.

As they walked over, Bucky turned to Steve and frowned, "I've been meaning to ask... why were there puzzle pieces all over the tent?"

"…. I thought it would keep him entertained.

Bucky chuckled at the sheepish look on the taller man's face, "He's not even a year-old Stevie, no wonder the pieces looked gummed half to death!"

"Well, they did keep him occupied, just not in the way I expected… and they helped with his teething… sort of."

Rolling his eyes, Bucky sighed. "You know, he might have really enjoyed puzzles when he got older… now we'll never know."

When they arrived at the cooking tent, the Howling Commandos were already there, and they waved the three over. "Captain, Sergeant, Pip-squeak! Come on, the cook was so pleased with what we got during the last raid, he's let us pinch some of his pepper… good thing too, because his cooking's not improved." Dugan whispered the last bit under his breath, mindful of the cook standing at the other side of the tent.

The pepper pot was set in the middle of the table, and as the trio sat at there, Oliver reached out in curiosity.

"You asked for it kid…" Dugan chuckled, pulling the pepper over and pouring a little bit into the palm of his hand and showing it to Oliver, who leaned in closer…. And breathed in a little too hard.

"ACHOO!"

The look of surprise and confusion on Oliver's face set everyone off laughing.

"ACHOO!"

Bucky tightened his hold on Oliver as the baby propelled himself forwards with his second sneeze. "Careful, careful, careful…" he chuckled fondly, "… you'll break your nose!"

"ACHOO!"

Aside from the chuckling of the commandos, there was silence for a few minutes, with Oliver glancing around in confusion. When he noticed that everyone was staring at him, the chuckling clearly directed at him, his face screwed up in displeasure.

"Aw, it's okay Oli…" Steve gently stroked his son's hair, "… we're not laughing at you, we swear."

There was a tense silence, where everyone believed that Oliver was going to cry anyway… before the six-month-old broke out into a toothless smile as his eye-lids started to slip shut, the time of the day finally catching up to him. A few minutes later, he was fast asleep.

Gently re-arranging the baby on his lap, Bucky couldn't help but beam at Steve, "He's gonna be just like you, you know. He'll be getting into trouble and trying to stop Hydra by the time he's crawling and walking."

"It probably won't be that bad?"

"Don't you remember what your Mom used to say? About the kids in the hospital she used to work with? The sooner they walk and talk, the sooner they're answering back and getting into trouble."

"Maybe we'll be lucky and he'll just age past all of the tough years?"

Bucky laughed at this, shaking his head, "If he' anything like you, then simple curiosity is the least of our worries. I'm gonna be grey before he's thirteen!"

Later on, as they walked back to their tent, Steve flung an arm around Bucky's shoulders in the pretence of mere friendship, "Don't worry Buck…" he whispered in his partner's ear, "… I'll still love you, even with grey hair."


	9. Separation Anxiety (Ian)

Alright, so I know that some people have read the beginning of this series before, but I thought that it needed a re-write, with new chapters and storylines ?

So please read, review and enjoy.

…

"You're just like Phil…" Clint grumbled as he entered the smaller bedroom, "… why are you so cheerful in the morning?"

Ian gazed up at him and giggled, raising his legs into the air and banging them against the bed in excitement.

"Yeah, yeah, you're cute." He reached into the cot and lifted the baby in his arms, bouncing up and down as he paced the room, "Cute. Cute. Cute. Cute!" He then sniffed and winced, "Stinky. Stinky. Stinky. Stinky."

After almost losing his eyebrows to the stench that was coming from his son's diaper, Clint took his son into the living room, sorting out a bottle (whilst trying to keep Lucky away) and then resting on the sofa, cradling Ian in his arms as he fed him… with Lucky resting his head on his leg in an attempt to beg.

"This is milk you stupid dog…" Clint groaned, "… Milk for the baby. You don't see him begging for your food, do you?"

As Lucky whined, Phil came out of the bedroom, suit all neatly pressed and briefcase in his hands. "Are you sure you're okay to keep an eye on him for the day?"

Clint beamed up at his husband, accepting a kiss from the older man before turning his attention back to Ian. "Bonding time with Papa, what could possibly go wrong?"

"Well… everything now that you've said that."

Chuckling at the pout on his husband's face, Phil leaned in for another kiss, before pecking his son on his forehead. "I'll see you both later tonight, okay?"

Ian didn't even tear his attention away from the bottle, more focused on feeding than the fact that his Daddy was leaving.

"Do you think he'll be alright?"

"Worry-wart…" Clint teased fondly, "… Natasha's coming around, if you're that worried?"

"… That does make me feel a little better."

"Your faith in me is touching."

Phil simply chuckled at this, waving one last goodbye at his husband and son, before heading out of the door.

It was then that Ian noticed he was gone.

"Aw baby no…" Clint muttered, wincing as Ian spat his bottle out and started to wail, squirming in Clint's arms in an attempt to see the door.

…..

"Well, he looks happy?"

Clint wearily glanced up from his attempt at feeding Ian a bowl of mush, shaking his head as Natasha smirked at him. "He's barely stopped crying to eat… and most of it's landing on his bib anyway."

"…. Is this the first time Phil's left without him?"

Usually, Phil and Clint would take Ian into work with them, keeping him in Phil's office when the man was working, and carrying him around when he had to.

Ian had rarely been without his Dad.

"I didn't think he'd go this mental! Make him stop!"

Natasha rolled her eyes, lifting Ian into her arms (not even flinching as peach mush stained her pale top). "Come on now маленькая птица…" she cooed, gently rocking the baby from side to side, "… Enough with this noise. Your Daddy has to work, and your Papa doesn't want to go completely deaf."

"Ah! Ah!"

"I know, I know."

Clint rolled his eyes as Ian instantly quietened and cooed in reply to Natasha's talking, small hands reaching up to grab at her red hair. "Aunt Natasha to the rescue again… you can dress him if you want."

"I do want." Twirling around, a small smile appearing on her face as Ian giggled in glee, "You're going to be the cutest baby in New York." She then turned to Clint, "Clear up the bowls, and set up the pram… we're going for a walk."

"Yes Ma'am."

…..

"I didn't even know he had clothes like that…" Clint mused a little over an hour later, as they walked down the streets, Ian chewing on the ear of a soft toy eagerly, dressed in blue denim dungarees with a white, black tied-pattern shirt underneath, "… where did you- "

"- Coulson's organised all of his clothes perfectly in his drawer. It's very impressive, you should take a look at it sometime."

Yeah… not going to happen.

"We should go shopping." Natasha eventually decided, steering the pram away from the main street and towards the bustling centre.

"Do we have toooooooo?!"

"Yes."

He knew why she was doing this to him… someone had to carry all the bags.

…..

Hours later, they wandered out of the local Baby store with a large, duck shaped bath with lots of little toys attached to it.

"Why Nat?" Clint whined, shifting the box in order to make the experience more comfortable for him, "Why do you do this to me?"

"Coulson mentioned that Ian would be out-growing his little baby bath soon, but he's too small to go into the main bath."

"…. When did he mention that?"

"During our afternoon tea's together."

"You have afternoon teas together?!"

Nat gave him a 'oh you poor dear' look out of the corner of her eye, as they continued back to the apartment.

"He also needs new pyjamas."

"How- never mind. Couldn't we have got them back there?"

"We only buy the best for Ian."

"…. Oh, great. You hear that noise? It's the sound of my wallet screaming!"

…..

"See… doesn't he look cute!"

Clint eyed the baby on the floor, recognising the look in Ian's eyes…. It was the same one Barney got when he was planning something… or when he was.

"Yeah, you think he's cute know… just wait for it. He'll prove you wrong one day."

Dressed in a yellow, teddy bear onesie, looking a little like Winnie the Pooh, Ian did look very cute… but Clint knew that as soon as Nat left and it was time for bed, the cuteness would melt away to reveal the true demon within.

"Alright kid…" Slowly, Clint lifted Ian into his arms and placed him in the arm-chair, "… tea time. Pea mush by the looks of it."

Ian didn't seem pleased to see the green mush, twisting his face away, refusing to open his mouth even slightly.

"Come on Ian…. Here comes the aeroplane!" As Clint made appropriate plane noises, he could hear Nat chuckling from the side of him, "This works in every TV show I've seen, come on!"

And then Clint saw the devil flash across that baby's face.

With a shriek of displeasure, Ian slammed his hand down on the edge of the small bowl, sending green mush flying everywhere, including over Clint.

"You little- "Clint paused, wiping his face and glaring at the baby, who was giggling.

"He doesn't like peas sweetie."

At the familiar face, Ian started to babble eagerly, stretching out his hands for Phil. Clint also went for a hug, frowning when it was refused, Phil holding up a hand to stop him.

"Go take a shower, and I'll consider it."

"…. I thought you liked me all dirty?"

As Phil glared at him, Nat pushed herself to her feet, a sly smirk on her face as she dodged Clint's attempts to hug her instead.

"I think this is my cue to leave…" she chuckled, patting Phil on the back, before making a hasty exit, "… have fun!"

As Clint pouted, Phil neatly made his way around him, heading straight for Ian, who was starting to shriek in glee and excitement. Checking that none of the pea mush had made its way onto Ian's onesie (which it hadn't remarkably), Phil lifted the six-month-old into his arms and beamed at him.

"Hello little one..." he whispered, smiling when Ian grabbed his fingers and gripped them, "… did you have fun with Papa and Aunt Nat today? I see you got a little bit spoiled!"

Having removed his t-shirt that was stained with the remains of the pea mush, Clint walked up behind Phil, kissing the back of his neck, before resting his forehead on Phil's shoulders. "Can we skip the baby and toddler years and go straight to when I can teach him about archery and kicking ass?"

"And miss his first words and first steps?" Phil shook his head, "Not a chance."

"… Not even for me?""

"Not even for you."


	10. Pickles (Sebastian)

The silence was the first sign that something was wrong.

3AM was prime screaming time, and Seb took advantage of it as much as he could.

Except for tonight apparently.

Woken up by his internal clock, Peter stared at the ceiling, drumming his fingers against his stomach.

Wade was on a job…. And Sebastian was silent.

That was never a good sign. As a child born of Wade's genes, the six-month-old babbled like no-body's business…. Even when he was asleep, he seemed to babble.

And then he heard something fall in Seb's room.

Instantly, he was up, feet lightly patting along the ground, muscles tense in preparation as he crept through the hallway, towards his son's rooms.

The door was slightly open… and he was so sure that he'd shut it last time he went in there.

"You can do this Peter…" he muttered to himself, "… You're Spiderman. You fight criminals everyday."

Slowly, he opened the door, peering inside… only to realise exactly who was in there.

"- And that's why non-stick pans are the best kiddo. The brains and blood can just be washed right off!"

Peter groaned, "Wade…. Please don't teach the six-month-old how to kill people. And I'm pretty sure you can wash blood and stuff off of normal pans as well."

"Really…. Well, it's not as if the author did any research, so I'll take your word for it."

Groaning again, Peter shook his head… but he couldn't help but smile. He'd missed Wades peculiar sense of humour… and the way he'd refer to someone known as the 'author'.

"I thought you weren't going to be back for another few days?" he then asked, moving further into the room, wrapping one arm around Wade's shoulders as the other hand went to brush over Seb's head, "Japanese gangs and all that…. Coulson seemed to think it would be difficult."

"Coulson would have done it with one arm tied behind his back, it was that easy!" Wade giggled, making a finger gun and blowing on it, "Easy Peasy lemon squeezie!"

Seb couldn't help but join in with the giggling, clapping his hands together eagerly.

"Wade please…" Peter sighed, tired despite the fond smile on his face, "…. Don't get him all worked up. I'd like at least another four hours sleep before he has to get up."

"…. But I wasn't planning on going to sleep…. I wasn't planning on either of us going to sleep."

The finger gesture Wade then made was very different.

"Not in front of the baby!"

"He can't copy me!"

Sebastian just kept giggling.

"Please Wade…" Peter practically begged, "… just help me get Seb back to sleep and then we can go to bed. To sleep!"

"Party-pooper."

Before Peter could say anything, Wade turned to Seb, making the finger gun suggestion again, aiming it at the baby before quietly whispering "bang".

As if he'd actually been pushed, Seb fell back against his soft blanket, giggling and staring up at the pair.

"There!" Wade exclaimed, "He'll be asleep in minutes!"

"… Have you taught our son to play dead… like a dog?"

"Well you shout at me if I say yes?"

"Wade!"

…..

Despite Wades' unorthodox methods, Seb did go to sleep very quickly, giving the pair a chance to get some sleep before the six-month-old demanded food and attention.

Once again, Peter's body alarm clock woke him up before any screaming baby could.

In fact, he was given almost an hour lie in…. and Wade was no longer lying beside him.

"Wade?"

Slowly he pushed himself into a seated position…. only to hear clanking coming from the kitchen, pots and pans banging together.

"Oh god no…."

Wade was not the cleanest of cooks.

"… no, no, no." Peter practically leapt out of bed, racing into the kitchen, stopping in his tracks when he saw Wade gently feeding the baby a strange-smelling green mush.

"Wade…" he slowly began, "… please tell me that's pea…. Cucumber… apple?"

"Pickle!"

Sometimes, Peter felt like he'd aged about ten years when he talked to Wade.

"Pickles? Please tell me you're joking."

"No… pickles are amazing!"

"Not for babies!" Peter rushed over, grabbing the bowl, "There's too much salt in them Wade, didn't you read the food for babies book that Coulson got us? The one that was on the table?"

"…. The one that I used for kindling?"

"Wade!" Peter groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head, "Just… find some apple mush for him whilst I… disinfect this bowl." A sudden thought then occurred to him, "Wade… where did you even get pickles."

Before Wade could answer, Peter spotted the empty McDonalds wrappers all over the kitchen.

"WADE!"


	11. Tiny Teeth (Fenrir)

There were many things that Odin didn't particularly like about his now six-month-old, youngest grandson. One was the red eyes, which were far too similar to a Jotun… eyes that threatened to undo all the work he had put into the biggest cover up in Asgardian history.

The other was the teeth.

Unlike other babies, Fenrir's teeth seemed to have come through far too quickly. Tiny, sharp little teeth, and of course he likes to put everything in his mouth – including fingers – and bite. All in all, it wasn't a pleasant experience.

Thor also, wasn't a big fan of the biting, and would often complain to Loki about it…. And Loki would just roll his eyes.

Well, Thor didn't know any healing spells, and his fingers were often so sore that training was a bit difficult, and he would sometimes have to have bandages around them and the Warriors Three and Sif were always ready for a joke or two when that happened.

Leather gloves did the trick, even if Loki did give him a disappointed look at the level of protection he needed to take against their youngest.

"Have the children been fed yet?" Loki asked one evening, as their small family settled down in their quarters.

"The servants would never forget about our children my love."

"Did they remember to bring Fenrir some little chunks of meat?"

With the teeth, it had been decided that, along with milk, Fenrir would also get some meat to gnaw on in the evening.

Personally, Thor just thought it was encouraging the… change, but Loki was determined.

"No…" Thor eventually admitted, wincing as Loki got to his feet and stormed out of the room, muttering angrily under his breath. Almost as soon as he was gone, Fenrir started to whine in his cot, pulling himself into a seated position as the whines turned to wailing.

Thor frowned – as he always did when Fenrir got like this – knowing that the wailing was due to Fenrirs' attachment to Loki. None of the other children had really been like this, unwilling to be parted from Loki for even a couple of minutes.

It also hurts to know that Fenrir seemed to prefer Loki over him, no matter how many times Loki tried to reassure him that babies didn't have favourites.

"Don't cry!" Loki cooed as he strode back into the room, placing the plate of meat on the table, before lifting Fenrir into his arms, "Are you hungry? Look what Mummy has for you!"

Fenrir eagerly gnawed on the meat chunks that were given to him, as Loki turned to Thor, rolling his eyes at the stunned look on the Thunder God's face, "Babies like it when you actually talk to them… no yelling, just talking."

Considering the thought for a moment, Thor nodded in determination, pushing himself to his feet and heading over to his consort and son. "Greetings my son…" he tried, keeping his voice nice and quiet.

Fenrir didn't pause in his feeding, but he did turn his big red eyes over to his Father as Loki smirked at the awkward attempt.

"… Your Mummy thinks you'll like this." Thor continued.

Loki didn't hear much more after that, chest feeling tight as he watched Thor interact with their son. He wasn't sure what made this pregnancy so different from the others, but Thor seemed to have taken Odin's words about 'monster children' to heart.

Fenrir was just another unusual child… and not his perfect heir.

So caught up in worrying about Thor and their children, Loki didn't even realise that that Fenrir had got through all the meat, until he spotted Thor staring at him like he'd said something important and Loki had completely missed it.

Before Thor could repeat himself, Loki leaned in for a kiss… well as much as he can with a baby in his arms.

"I need to go put Fenrir to bed…" he whispered, pushing all negative thoughts to the back of his mind, "… wait for me?"

If Thor was worried about him, that little comment soothed his nerves, as he moved over to the bed and watched fondly as Loki started to hum an old Asgardian lullaby.

"Jeg ber deg følge med

Hvor hen hun måtte dra

Hjelp til så hun kan se

Hjelp meg å gi slipp

Alle mødre vet

Noe barna vet

Så de komme frem

Dit du føger dem

Har hun tro så er hun trygg

Så de kommer frem

Dit du følger dem

Har hun tro så er hun trygg"

Thor listened, a soft smile on his face as he watched his husband pace around the small room, rocking the six-month-old Fenrir in his arms, the red eyes slowly slipping shut.

Once Fenrir was fast asleep and in his cot, Loki turned back to Thor, rolling his eyes as the Thunder God held out his arms.

"So impatient…" he muttered fondly.


	12. Giggles (Edwin)

"Alright…" Tony rolled his head around on his shoulders and shook himself out, "… I've got this. I don't need Jarvis." His talking out-loud quickly veered off into mumbling to himself.

Jarvis had some sort of virus which neither of them wanted Edwin to catch.

He could do this… he was a genius, he could definitely look after a six-month-old for a few hours, whilst Jarvis purged his operating systems.

Rhodes snorted, prompting Tony to turn to him. "Tony, relax…" he rolled his eyes, moving over to the cot, "one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine and ten. Ten fingers and ten toes. Two eyes, two ears…. I think you can keep all that the same, right?"

"Don't joke about this!" Tony leaned into the cot and lifted a cooing Edwin into his arms, settling him against his chest.

He still couldn't get used to the feeling of holding his son like this, the warm feeling in his chest as the child snuggled closer to him.

Edwin was his life.

But taking care of a six-month-old was hard, even when Jarvis was around. He stroked the soft black hair and grinned to himself, feeling Rhodey's eyes on him.

"See, you'll be fine." James gestured at the baby, "You don't need me Tony."

Shrugging, Tony carefully laid his son down on the changing table and fumbled around for the necessary supplies. "I just… don't want to screw up." He mumbled as he started to undo the black onesie, "I've screwed up a lot of things and… I don't want to screw up him, or Jarvis."

He didn't look his best friend in the eyes as he removed the nappy and threw it into the bin, "Hey Eddy! How was your little sleep?"

Edwin was slowly becoming more and more alert, sleepily looking up at his Dad and giving him a gummy smile, albeit, a tired one.

"Yeah, was it a nice sleep?"

Now, Edwin was cooing.

"That good? Wow! How does some play-time sound?" Re-clothing the baby in a little t-shirt and trousers, he brought Edwin into the living room, lying him on the floor gym, placing a little velvet blanket over him to keep him warm. Soft crinkly animals and light up devices that kept a child busy for ages.

"Tony, nobody is perfect…" Rhodey rolled his eyes, sounding exasperated as he sat beside Tony, "…. Not even you as much as you hate to admit it. You're not going to screw this up."

"…. What if I turn out like Dad?" Tony didn't look up at his friend, instead focusing on the baby, who was lazily kicking his feet and babbling at the dangling objects all around him.

"Do you want to turn out like him?"

"What? No!"

Rhodey shrugged, "Then you won't. You know that your Dad's parenting style… wasn't the greatest no matter what Stane says. So you'll try and be better. That's all that Edwin needs."

Silence.

"Tony… you are nothing like Howard." Rhodey said firmly, but soft, "You are smarter and kinder, and come on… Jarvis wouldn't leave you alone with Edwin unless he trusted you absolutely."

Silence.

"Just… think about it for a moment Tony."

Tony ignored him, flicking on his computer and focusing on the blueprints that were on there. Obadiah had been on his case recently and he was eager to avoid any more lectures.

With Rhodey keeping an eye on Edwin, time seemed to fly by, and soon he was sending the new missile blueprints over to Stane. Checking the time, he shuffled out of his chair and scooped up the six-month-old, lifting up the t-shirt to blow a raspberry against the baby's tummy, smiling at the soft babbling Edwin let out.

"Look at how cute you are! Look at how cute I made you!"

Rhodey chuckled at the goofy tone, as Tony grabbed a nearby toy and waved it near Edwin's face, laughing as the baby reached out for it, tiny hands grasping at the soft material eagerly. As Tony started to give the giraffe a funny voice, Edwin's face scrunched up briefly

For a moment, it looked like he was going to cry.

And then came the gloriously cute baby laugh.

Tony and Rhodey both glanced at one another, before Tony let out a delighted laugh of his own, picking Edwin up and nestling him in the crook of his arm.

Neither him, nor Rhodey noticed the doors sliding open and Pepper striding into the room.

She stopped in her tracks as she watched Tony with the giraffe, making Edwin laugh again and again.

"Tony- " Pepper spoke up, her voice full of emotion as she stared down at her boss and his son.

"Pepper…" Tony beamed up at her, "… Did you hear him?"

"Yes. I-It was… beautiful!" Pepper moved to sit on the sofa, beside Rhodes, unable to take her eyes off of the father and son pair, "Jarvis will be sorry that he missed it."

"And that's why I'm recording it." Rhodey said softly, holding up his phone, as Tony continued to make Edwin laugh, "He can watch it when he's all better."

Knowing that he was being recorded, Tony turned his attention to the camera and beamed, "Jarvis, we have the best kid ever."

….

It took a little over twenty-four hours for Jarvis's system to be cleared, and when he entered the living room the next day, Tony had gone back to playing with Edwin, lying on his back with the baby on his stomach.

It was a brilliant sight.

He watched for a few more seconds, before stepping forwards and taking a seat on the floor next to his husband and son, not even caring for the fact that his suit would crease. "Morning love." He whispered, running his hands over Edwin's head, "Any problems?"

"None what-so-ever."


	13. First Steps (Joey)

'Now that she's back in the atmosphere, with drops of Jupiter in her hair, hey, hey, hey. She acts like summer and walks like rain, reminds me that there's a time to change, hey, hey, hey.'

"It's our song!" Foggy called out from the kitchen area, cursing slightly under his breath as he caught his finger with the knife.

Matt grinned as he ran his fingers over the latest legal documents, "When did we decide this was our song?" He asked, the sound of the rhythmic chopping calming his mind.

"You're breaking my heart Matty! It's the song I was listening to me when we first met!" Foggy turned his attention to Joey, who was pushing a toy train along the floor, "Can you believe this kid? Tell your Papa how silly he is!"

"Papa, Papa, Papa!"

"That's right!"

After learning how to say "Pa!" and "Da!", Joey had only just learnt how to say the actual words, and honestly, it was never going to get old. At just over a year old, Joey was picking up a new skill every week. This week, it was finding the nearest solid object and pulling himself into a standing position.

Like now for instance.

Shuffling over to the small table, where the radio sat, Joey reached up and babbled as the radio presenter started chattering about their newest competition.

"What is it Joey?" Matt asked gently, "Ra-Dio. Come on, ra-dio."

"Really Matty, really?" Foggy rolled his eyes, smirking when Mat gave him his best innocent look (which was actually pretty effective). "Let's just stick with yes and no for a while."

Ignoring his parents, Joey made a sound of frustration in his attempts to grab the musical object, only to over-balance slightly and fall backwards onto the floor.

Matt and Foggy held their breaths as Joey frowned in confusion for a few seconds, before twisting around to crawl in a different direction

"I swear, every time he falls, I just want to run over and help!" Foggy sighed wearily, "How do you remain so calm."

"He fell onto his butt, the part which is heavily padded…" Matt chuckled, "… he wasn't hurt, only shocked. If we ran over and began fussing, he'd just burst into tears because he'd think he was dying or something. Don't worry. He'll let us know if he's seriously hurt."

As Joey began to squeeze the tentacles of his Octotunes toy, Foggy glanced out of the apartment window. "It's starting to get warmer… maybe we should go for a walk or something? Before it gets to a point where all we can do is lie here and whine about the heat?" As though coming to a realisation in his mind, Foggy suddenly snapped his fingers together, wincing when Joey whined at the sound, "Sorry kid, but I have a brilliant idea for when it does get warm…. Mini paddling pool in the living room."

"… You want to put a mini paddling pool, full of water, in the middle of our living room… with two blind people wandering around?"

Silence.

"You could… you could hear the splashing of the joyful baby, right?" Foggy sounded so hopeful, "It'll just be a little one."

"Okay, okay…" Matt chuckled, "… I'll think about it."

…..

Of course, they ended up getting the little pool, and after a few days of confusion and spills, it had a place in the corner of the living room, keeping Joey cool during the hotter parts of the day.

"Alright, this is it!"

Matt glanced up from his paperwork and frowned, "This is it?"

"Joey's little glasses look adorable , he's wearing a cool denim cap, we are ready for that posh party the bosses have thrown at us."

Ah yes… the Landman and Zach office party, all children allowed.

Aka, come and bring your kids, and we'll all try and out-do each other.

"Joey will be the cutest one there, even if it kills me."

Matt chuckled, pushing himself to his feet, "I'll get the pushchair ready, you put some sunscreen on him then."

"Oh yeah sure, give me the hard job!"

…..

"Fifteen minutes." Foggy sighed, as he pushed the pushchair in through the park entrance, "I can't believe it took me fifteen minutes to put a tiny bit of sunscreen on him."

Matt just chuckled, grip tightening on his stick as the noise from the other parents and children hit his ears, along with the scent of dog mess and uncooked hot dogs. As they got closer and closer to the noise, Joey started to whine and squirm in his chair.

"I know, I know…" Foggy whispered soothingly, reaching over and gently ruffling Joey's hair, "… we'll stay for about an hour, and then we'll get home and you can get back in your little pool."

"An hour? A little optimistic, don't you think?"

"Fine… however long it takes, before I lose my temper with everyone. Sound better?"

"Sounds more believable."

Quickly spotting the Landman and Zach party, Foggy led them over in that direction, the fake grin already making its way onto his face.

With Foggy dealing with the greetings, Matt moved to lift Joey into his arms, "I know, I know." He murmured as the baby whined and squirmed, "I know you don't want to be here." He sighed deeply, "To be honest, I don't really want to be here either."

Finding an abandoned bench nearby, which felt a lot cooler than everywhere else (and not smelling any fresh paint which might have been the reason behind the emptiness), Matt took a seat and slowly started to pat Joey on the back, hoping to soothe him before they got mobbed by the other parents.

"Papa." Joey grumbled into his chest, tiny fingers clutching at the material of his t-shirt.

"We can do this… we can do this."

…..

After around ten minutes, Joey settled down and Matt was led over to the other parents and colleagues from Landman and Zach, as Foggy kept an eye on his son with the other young babies.

"You should see him right now…" Foggy whispered, knowing that Matt could hear him, "… crawling through the grass on his belly. I'm going to cry about those grass stains later, I just know it."

Matt couldn't help but chuckle slightly, thankful that it seemed to fit in with the conversation, as the others started laughing about something or other…. To be honest, he hadn't been paying attention he the conversation ever since the words "so on our last vacation to Hawaii."

And then he heard Foggy's heart-rate increase.

"Oh… my…. God."

Not caring if he looked rude, Matt turned away from the others, "Foggy! Foggy!"

"I think he's going to walk Matty!" Foggy rushed over, taking Matt's arm and leading him over to the play-area, "He's managed to pull himself up onto his feet using one of the climbing frames…. He's got his head tilted to one side… one moment."

Letting go of Matt's arm, Foggy knelt down. "Joey! Joey, over here!"

Following suit, Matt moved down to his knees as well, "Come on Joey… you can do it."

There was a brief moment of silence before Joey's heart-beat sped up ever so slightly, before Foggy started to clap in excitement.

"He's doing it! He's doing it!"

Everyone else in the area almost seemed to get quieter, as they were also watching.

Unlikely, but the thought was nice.

"Come on! Come on!" Foggy encouraged, knowing that Joey was following the sound of his voice, "You can do it."

Only a few more seconds passed, before Foggy whooped in glee and shot back up into a standing position, "You did it!" he cried out, as Matt slowly got to his feet, "Joey, you walked!"

"How did it look?" Matt couldn't help but ask, a soft pang in his heart at the knowledge that he would never get to see it himself.

"He stumbled a few times, but I think he knew what he was doing and where he was going…" Foggy chuckled, "… I think he's been planning this for a while." He leaned over and whispered in Matt's ear, "He's definitely been the star of the show for this picnic."

"Oh?"

"Everyone's staring at him Matty…. I think some of the women are going to cry and quite frankly, I thought most of these women had their tear ducts removed."

"Foggy- "

"- What, it's true!"

Joey giggled in agreement.


	14. Serum (Oliver)

"Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear Oliver! Happy Birthday to you!"

Looking around in confusion, Oliver wriggled in his Papa's arms, trying to see everyone present at the party…. Which was the majority of the camp to be honest.

"C'mon kiddo, time to blow out the candle!" Bucky cheered, holding up the cake as Steve held Oliver up, keeping a firm hold of him as the one-year-old reached out for the pretty, flickering light. Before his little, vulnerable fingers could touch the open flame, Steve blew the candle out.

Everyone cheered as though Oliver had been the one to blow it out, making the baby giggle in delight, arms now reaching out for Bucky.

Taking the child into his arms and bouncing him up and down, Bucky beamed at Oliver's soft giggling, watching as Steve glanced around in amazement.

"I can't believe how this all turned out…" Steve chuckled, "… fresh cake, new toys and no Hydra. I think we've outdone ourselves."

Bucky nodded, wincing slightly as Oliver tugged on his hair, "No birthday should be spent without presents… not that he'll remember this mind you."

"Well, it's the thought that counts."

"Damn straight it does!" Dugan agreed, taking Oliver out of Bucky's arms, "And I know he'll never remember it, but this cake is dry as hell. What kind of birthday party has dry cake?!" Glancing around, making sure that no one but the Commandos were listening, Dugan held Oliver up and pointed at Bucky, "Hey kiddo, can you say Momma for me?"

Bucky rolled his eyes, "Knock it off Dugan, I ain't the kid's mom. Get him to call me Papa instead, that makes way more se- "

"- Momma!"

All eyes turned to Oliver, who was holding out his arms for Bucky, "Momma!"

Ignoring Dugan's hysterical laughter, Bucky lifted Oliver out of Dugan's arms and looked him in the eyes, a serious expression on his face, "Pa-Pa… say it with me… Pa-Pa."

Oliver stared at him in confusion, before giggling and patting Bucky on the nose, "Momma!"

As Steve burst out into laughter, Bucky sighed wearily. "You call him Daddy…" he found himself whining, "… can't I be Daddy as well?"

"Momma! Momma! Mo- "

BANG.

At the gunshot, everyone immediately leapt into action, shoving Oliver into Howard's arms before jumping into action and grabbing their weapons, just as enemy soldiers started to break through the trees.

…

Needless to say, the enemy force was small, and clearly not prepared for Captain America, as the fight was over in less than half an hour.

"Oliver!" Bucky called out, rushing over to where Howard had set up, hearing the screaming of a child… his child, "Oliver!"

"In here!"

With Steve rushing behind him, the pair burst into the sheltered area, to see Howard attempting to keep Oliver still… the child's clothing turning red just under his left shoulder.

"Howard, what the hell- "

"- a rogue bullet came through the tent and grazed him!" Howard cried out desperately, quickly interrupting Steve before he could launch into a full lecture, "I'm trying to have a look at it, but he won't stop screaming and he keeps wriggling!"

It was clear that Howard was distressed, his face flushed and his usually neat hair falling out of place.

Needless to say, it was uncharacteristic behaviour, and that (along with Oliver's continued screaming) spurred the pair into action, with Steve taking his son out of Howard's arms and rocking him back and forth to calm him down, wincing as blood started to stain his uniform, before they all started to run towards the medic tent.

"Emergency! It's an emergency!"

…..

Eight thick stitches, and a small dose of painkillers later, and Oliver was fast asleep. Bandages were wrapped around his shoulder and arm, and every so often he would moan in pain.

Steve and Bucky sat there, watching him in silence.

"Bucky…" Steve finally broke the silence, "… do you think we did the right thing by keeping him here? With us?"

"… I don't know."

"Maybe- "Steve took a deep breath, "- Maybe we should think about finding him a family at the next village."

"Just until the war's finished?"

"Just until the war's finished."

…..

"Momma! Momma! Daddy!"

Bucky groaned and rolled over, his eyes slowly opening as he turned to check on Oliver…. Who was standing up in his cot, looking like nothing had happened, like yesterday had been a horrible nightmare.

"Hey…" Bucky whispered, slowly getting out of bed and making his way over to the cot, Steve barely stirring behind him, "… Hey Oli, how ya feelin'?"

"Momma!" Oliver was bouncing up and down eagerly, "Momma!"

The painkillers should have worn off by now, but Oliver was showing no signs of being in pain.

"Alright, let's have a look at it." Bucky whispered, lifting Oliver out of the cot and placing him on the ground, trying to keep him still as he slowly unwound the bandage, desperately hoping that the wound wasn't going to show any signs of infection.

But nothing was there.

Nothing except a faint white line to indicate that there was once a wound there.

"Steve!" He called out, twisting around to face the bed, "Steve, come and have a look at this!"

The panicked tone in Bucky's voice, caught Steve's attention, and the larger man was out of bed like a shot, kneeling next to his partner.

"I think we need to see Howard." He muttered, examining the thin scar.

….

"Okay…" Howard took a step back and brushed his hands through his hair, "… so apparently, the super soldier serum in your DNA does work. Accelerated healing on display, right now."

"So… he's healed?" Bucky frowned, "Completely? No problems whatsoever?"

"I doubt he even remembers actually getting shot." Howard's eyes narrowed in thought, "Cap… can I have your shield?"

Slowly, Steve un-hooked it and handed it over to Howard, who rested it against the table, before putting Oliver on the floor. Almost instantly, Oliver's attention was grabbed by the colourful shield, cooing in delight and making his way over to the shield, grabbing it and lifting it over his head.

"And there's the super strength." Howard announced, "The serum must have been lying low until the body went through some sort of trauma… incredible!"

As Howard continued to crow and chatter, clearly happy that his little experiment worked after all, Steve and Bucky turned to Peggy and Chester Phillips.

"So… what does this mean?"

Peggy frowned, "What do you mean?"

Steve and Bucky glanced at each other, before Steve nervously cleared his throat. "Well, after what happened yesterday, me and Bucky thought that- well, maybe we should consider putting him up for adoption? I mean… he did get shot."

"Sorry Rogers, but no can do." Phillips sighed, "Now that he's showing signs of having the serum, we can't risk sending him away. What if someone tracks him down and decides to use his blood to create even more HYDRA super soldiers?"

"But- "

"Look." Phillips held up his hand for Steve to stop, "I get what you're saying Cap, I really do… but it's either here with us… or it's in a secure military base, that none of us will have access to. Especially not you two. Make your choice gentlemen."

Steve and Bucky glanced at each other once again, coming to a decision fairly quickly.

"I guess… we'll just have to take better precaution when HYDRA next attacks."

"Good decision Cap."

"A little shield of his own!"

Everyone turned to Howard, who had Oliver in his arms and was practically jumping up and down in excitement.

"If I can get a little more vibranium, then I'm sure I can make him a little shield of his own!"

Needless to say, the "no's" were resounding.


	15. Christmas (Ian)

"This is actually a good idea…. Consider me impressed."

Clint pressed a hand against his chest in mock shock, keeping an eye on Ian as he crawled a little closer to the open fireplace. "Are you saying I don't usually have good ideas, oh love of my life?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying…" Phil smirked, before using one arm to pull Clint closer, "… but this is nice. Where did you even find this place?"

"It was one of my safehouses when I was… free-range. Nobody but me and Barney know about this place."

Phil frowned, "Is that… meant to reassure me?"

There was a brief moment of silence, Before Clint quickly cleared his throat and gestured at the giant, decorated tree in the corner of the room. "Nice right? I even added some Captain America baubles, just for you."

If Phil had been concerned before, the ridiculous baubles seemed to have taken his mind off it. "The presents will look good under there… almost picture perfect right?"

"…. You're going to make us go through some family photos, aren't you."

"Resistance is futile."

"With the matching jumpers?"

"Especially with the matching jumpers. My parents will love it." Phil smirked at the ensuing groan, before glancing up at the top of the tree, "Clint… is that a gun on the top of the tree?"

"With a little Christmas hat attached!"

…

"Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way!"

Phil glanced up from his book, smirking at the sight of Clint in the reindeer antler headband, hands guiding Ian through a bouncy dance, the one-year-old giggling in delight, which only made Clint laugh harder as well.

Ian was wearing green and red striped pyjamas, with a little elf hat resting on top of his messy brown hair… Natasha must have taken about a dozen photos before they left.

With Clint switching to another song, Phil turned his attention back to the book, only managing to get through a few more pages before the singing stopped and Clint's eager voice piped up.

"Phil… Phil, look at this."

At Clint's hiss, Phil glanced up from his book, "Clint, I've already…" He then stopped and twisted around fully in amazement.

Ian was standing up all on his own…. He was a bit wobbly, but he was definitely standing on his own.

"I think he's going to walk!" Clint exclaimed in excitement, shuffling back slightly and holding out his arms for Ian, "Come on… you can do it!"

Slowly, Phil slid off the sofa and moved to kneel next to Clint, his own arms outstretched. "That's it Ian, you're doing so well!"

Ian frowned at them, as if to say 'don't patronise me', before wobbling forwards slightly, one tiny foot moving in front of the other, hands out for balance. It took a little over two minutes, but eventually, he reached Clint, falling forwards into his arms.

"Yes, yes, yes!" Clint shot to his feet, throwing Ian up into the air and catching him again, "You did! Soon we'll have you on the shooting range, give you a little purple uniform and- "

"- and maybe we should focus on him going to school first?" Phil shook his head in amusement, kissing both Ian and Clint on their foreheads, before pushing himself to his feet and walking to the kitchen, going to prepare their dinner.

Glancing into the living, he smiled warmly at the sight of Clint sitting on the rug near the fire, Ian between his legs and leaning back against his stomach. Ian leaned his head back to look up at his Papa, giggling as Clint pulled a funny face back at him. He then bent forwards to kiss the messy locks of hair that were breaking free of the elf hat, then resting his cheek on Ian's head, winking at a watching Phil as Ian babbled eagerly.

Phil honestly felt like his heart was going to burst.

Clearing his throat, he turned his attention back to dinner, setting up the mixer that would mash up Ian's little Christmas dinner.

…

A little under two hours later, Ian was shoving his hand into his special United Air Force bowl (Nick gave out the weirdest presents), scooping up the last of his mashed-up dinner and shoving it into his mouth with a happy little "yum!"

"Do you think he even realised there were vegetables in that?" Clint questioned, cackling as Ian then lifted the bowl up, clearly intending to lick it.

"No…" Gently, Phil took the bowl off of him, "…. But then again, he's not as fussy as you."

Before Clint could protest in his usual dramatic fashion, Phil pushed himself to his feet and clapped his hands together. "Right… how about presents?"

…..

Why couldn't children open their presents all at once?

Clint watched as Ian occupied himself with a tiny piece of wrapping paper and tape, not actually opening the present. Phil had been playing Santa, handing out the present, before making the first tear for Ian to pull at…. Which he wasn't.

"Can't I open them for him?" Clint whined, "All these presents, and he's not paying any attention to them!"

"He'll get around to it, have a little bit of patience." Phil was too busy taking pictures too care about whether or not his son was actually opening the presents.

This changed half an hour later.

With a little bit of help, Ian had un-wrapped an activity table, complete with lights and sounds and other things to annoy Nick (because that's where the table would end up); a little garage with several cars and ramps; a mat that made sounds when you stepped on it; a wooden shape-sorter box; a musical book of nursery rhymes; several bath toys, including an activity whale that would stick to the side of the bath; soft teddies and stackable bricks.

Very soon, the room was a mess. Bright wads of paper were strewn across the floor as well as boxes and toys. Personally, Phil believed it wouldn't have been such a mess if Clint hadn't started a paper fight, sticking bows to his own hair and asking Phil to unwrap him.

Phil still maintains that Clint deserved the withering look.

A soft Christmas song played over the radio as the small family lay on the sofa. Clint was lying on his back, Phil snuggled up to his side and Ian on his belly. One hand was gently stroking Phil's head, and the other was supported Ian's back as the baby played with his shape box, clapping when he got one right.

Soon, the sun began to set, and Ian rubbed at his tired eyes.

"Alright, time for bed I think." Phil moved off of Clint and lifted Ian into his arms, bending down to pick up one of his new teddies, "Clint, why don't you take him, and I'll neaten everything up before Nick and Natasha arrive tomorrow. I'll be there in a few minutes to help tuck him in."

Clint nodded, pushing himself to his feet to take his son, smiling as Ian immediately snuggled up to his chest and closed his eyes. He turned the smile to Phil before heading to the small room that had been set up for Ian.

True to his word, Phil was there a few minutes later, carrying Ian's favourite purple teddy bear that had been forgotten downstairs. Clint was rocking Ian back and forth, humming what sounded like a recent pop song slowed down as Phil leaned against the wall to watch in silent contentment.

"Look, Daddy's here…" Clint pointed over at Ian, "… Time to say good night little one." Pressing a gentle kiss to the top of Ian's head, he placed him in the cot, as Phil moved to the other side, placing the purple teddy inside and kissing Ian on the cheek.

"Goodnight Ian."

As they slowly left the room, switching off the light and closing the door, the pair turned to one another.

"Is it weird that I can't imagine life without him? Like, I know we never talked about children but- "

"- but he's our son." Phil gently interrupted, "And no… I don't think I can imagine life without him either."

….

Phil heard the noise at around 2am, and was instantly awake.

Clint of course, was completely oblivious, even as Phil reached under his pillow and pulled out a small taser, slowly getting out of bed and making his way out to the corridor, avoiding all the squeaky floor-boards that he'd marked out earlier.

The noise was coming from his son's room.

Phil picked up the pace slightly, pushing the bedroom door open and glaring at the sight of the shadowed figure standing over his son crib. It wasn't Natasha, clearly… and it wasn't Nick.

"Step away from the crib." He growled, frowning when the figure didn't even flinch, "Now."

Nothing.

He wasn't given another chance.

The trigger was pulled, and two lines shot out, attaching to the man's back and sending a high electrical current through them. Within seconds the man was on the floor, twitching and drooling as the shocking continued.

"PHIL! PHIL!"

Clint came crashing into the room, startling Ian awake. As the one-year-old screamed his displeasure, Clint finished putting his pants on, frowning at the sight of the twitching man on the floor.

"Oh…. Hey Barney."

…..

"I just wanted to see him."

Barney couldn't seem to take his eyes off of Ian, who was finally back asleep after his screaming fit.

"I-I wanted to make sure that he was alright."

"Oh right…" Phil rolled his eyes, "… because we're the bad parents in this scenario."

An awkward silence fell over them all, before Clint nervously cleared his throat. "You signed over your parental rights Barney…" he gently reminded his brother, "… if you wanted to see him, maybe next time you should call and ask?

"What, and have your boyfriend- "The word was sneered, "- hang up on me as soon as he realises that it's me?"

Phil didn't deny it.

"He's my son Clint!" Barney then started to beg, "I shouldn't have to ask to see him!"

"Yes, you do! Especially when you SIGNED OVER YOUR PARENTAL RIGHTS AND DUMPED HIM ON MY DOORSTEP!"

Once again, Ian woke up screaming, lashing out at however was holding him, only settling down when he heard the familiar humming of his Dad and the gentle rocking motion accompanying it.

"You can't just pick and chose when you actually want to be a Dad."

"Better than keeping him with me when I'm feeling… low and kicking the crap out of him. Like our old man."

Clint's entire face fell at this, paling as he completely tensed up. Automatically, almost unconsciously, his hand brushed over his chest where a fairly large scar sat…. glass bottle when he was four.

His parents had died not long after that.

"You're not taking him…" he eventually whispered, his words coming out as a hiss, "… I don't mind you visiting but- "

"- but he's my son!"

"No… he's not anymore." Clint glared at him, "You signed him over, and now he's our son. Legal paperwork signed and everything."

For a moment, it looked like Barney was going to argue, only for him to sigh wearily and shake his head.

"Can… can I at least stay? Just for a few hours?"

Clint and Phil glanced at one another, almost seeming to communicate silently with each other, before Clint sighed and nodded.

"Alright…" He held up a hand to stop Barney before he could say anything, "… but you have to be gone before the morning. If Natasha finds out you're here, she'll- "

"- she doesn't scare me."

Even Ian seemed to be in disbelief about this, twisting around to stare at the strange man in confusion.

"You and I both know that isn't true." Clint smirked, "I can always call her and test this?"

"Please don't."

That answer said it all.

…

"What's he doing here?"

Clint turned to his brother, who was practically pressed up against the back wall at the sight of Natasha and Nick Fury entering the cabin. "He was… curious about Ian. Wanted to come and visit."

"And take him away I bet." Nick muttered giving the older Barton brother a dirty look, "You had your fill yet Barton?"

Barney glanced over at his son, who was happily playing with some of his new toys. "I- "he noticed the look on Nick's face, and sighed wearily, "- Yeah. I'm done."

"Good… let me show you the door."

Choosing not to say anything as his brother was 'encouraged' to leave, Clint turned his attention to Natasha, who was on the ground and handing Ian her present, helping him unwrap it to reveal a little soft tool set, complete with soft saws, drills, hammers and other things, including the box.

Almost immediately, Ian had grabbed the hammer and was hitting the ground in glee.

Nick then made his way back inside, "I don't know why you agreed to keep him around Chesse…" he said to Phil, "… but that man is bad news and he's been bad news since day one, no offense Barton."

How could Clint disagree… his brother had come in with the intention to steal Ian and only stopped because of Phil's little… shock.

"Nick… It's Christmas." Phil sighed wearily, "Can we just put it behind us? Just for today?"

When Fury opened his mouth to protest, Phil shot him a warning glare, shutting him up immediately

"Just for today." He grumbled.

"Good… now, don't you have something for Ian?"


	16. 1st Birthday (Seb)

Peter slowly moved into bedroom, a small smile on his face as he avoided tripping over the clutter of toys and the menageries of teddies, making his way over to the cot.

"Daddy!" His one-year-old cried out, a small pout on his face as he snuggled into his warm cocoon of sheets and blankets.

His cheeks looked a little flushed and his nose was running like a tap.

"Poor baby…" Peter sighed, "… Ill on your birthday, huh?"

"Daddy!"

Placing the back of his hand to Seb's forehead, Peter sighed a little in relief, happy that the fever wasn't too high. Probably just the common cold. Enough to make the toddler feel miserable, but no enough to confine him to his room for rest.

"We'll wrap you up and you'll be alright." Peter then decided, lifting Seb into his arms as the toddler wiped his running nose on the sleeve of his pyjamas, "Don't do that, we can get some tissues."

Seb just grumbled, burying his face into his Daddy's chest.

"I know, I know." They moved into the living room, where a large pile of present sat. Putting a clean jumper on his son, he then placed him into the activity area, switching on the CD player (full of Disney songs of course) and heading to make breakfast.

As the CD whirred to life, the opening bars to Zero to Hero echoed throughout the apartment. On the floor, Seb seemed to forget that he was feeling terrible, giggling in delight at the sound of one of his favourite songs, legs banging against the mat.

Preparing the baby food, Peter found himself dancing along to the beat as well, singing the high notes as well as he could as, hips swinging (hahahaha) along to the beat.

"Bless my soul, Herc was on a roll! Person of the week in every Greek opinion poll!"

Starting to really get into the song, Peter failed to notice his boyfriend entering the room, an uncharacteristically soft smile on his face. It was only and when Peter spun around, did he notice the mercenary standing behind him.

Before he could say anything in his own defense, Wade shook his head. "God, I love you." he whispered, stunning Peter into silence.

"I-I- "

Wade shook his head, silently interrupting before making his way over and kissing Peter on the forehead. "I brought cake!"

In an instant, his entire mood changed and the smiling, happy-go-lucky mercenary was back.

"It's got a unicorn on it!"

"You mean, beside the cake that Aunt May baked for him yesterday?"

"… You can never have too much cake."

Peter smirked and rolled his eyes, "It is if the kid in question is one! Unless Weasel is coming around?"

"He's closing the bar and everything!"

Weasel liked to pretend that he was all tough and macho, but it was all an act, especially when confronted with one of Sebastian's famous pouts.

"Pa! Pa!"

Instantly, Wade turned his attention to his son, rushing over and lifting the baby up in the air, "Happy birthday to you…" he started to sing, dreadfully out of tune, "… happy birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear Sebby! Happy birthday to you!"

Peter might have winced at the out of tune song, but Sebby was clearly delighted, giggling as Wade started to dance around the room, with him in his arms.

"And how excited are you?!"

Sebby decided then to sneeze, snot hitting Wade in the face.

"… I don't think he's well." Wade forced out when he'd gotten over the shock of being sneezed on.

Personally, Peter didn't understand why the other man was so shocked. During his work, surely he'd had much worse on his face?

"I'll be sure to give him a bath before Aunt May and Weasel arrive…" Peter sighed, "… unless you want to volunteer?"

"Bagsy playing with the duck!" Wade whooped, rushing towards the bathroom, his son in his arms, the pair of them giggling madly as they went

Just over an hour later (because Seb could be the biggest pain in the ass when it came to bath-time), the pair re-entered the living room, immediately moving over to the large present that he must have brought in earlier.

"Let's open this, huh?" Wade started tearing at the wrapping paper, ignoring Peter's protests that they were meant to wait until the others had arrived. As the paper fell away, Peter couldn't help but beam at the picture on the box.

A baby suitable see-saw, in red, blue and black (of course)

"Want me to open it?" Wade was too caught up in his and Seb's excitement to notice Peter's content smile, "You wanna play?"

Seb just made a squealing noise to convey his glee.

"I'll take that as a yes."

Handing Seb over to Peter, Wade practically tore the box open, setting up the seesaw as quickly as possible.

"Where did you even find something like this?" Peter asked, closely examining the toy, "And dare I ask how much it cost?"

"Money is not a problem baby boy, especially not after that businessman in Spain the other week."

Sometimes it was best not to ask.

Peter pointed at the seesaw, glancing at a squirming Sebby, "Do you like it?" He smiled as the baby nodded vigorously, "Okay, let's get you strapped in then."

With Seb playing happily on his new seesaw, rocking backwards and forwards, clearly not caring that he was ill anymore, Peter made his way over to Wade, kissing him on his rough cheek.

"I love you…" he whispered into the older man's ear, "And this, this was an amazing idea."

….

It was easy to see which presents were chosen by Peter.

Clothes with the periodic table on them.

A blanket with the solar system sewn into it.

A child-friendly microscope.

And finally, a night-light that generated the night sky onto the ceiling.

If Wade didn't know how much his son loved the new seesaw as well, then he might feel a little bit insecure about his choice of present.

Aunt May had chosen some fairly intellectual presents of her own, including a 'My first number train' from Duplo, a camera toy and an octopus, number-sorting bath toy.

Weasel however, had some very different ideas, including a Vtech Turn and Drive toy ("So that he can drive the getaway vehicle one day!"), and a 'My first laptop'… in case he wanted to be a hacker instead.

As Seb struggled to decide what to play with, Peter sheepishly turned to Wade, "I honestly didn't realise how much he was going to get."

"Nothing wrong with spoiling him though, right?" Wade paused for a moment, his eyes glazing over slightly as though in memory, only for him to shake his head, clearing his thoughts, "Right?"

Peter just shrugged, before he suddenly lunged for Seb, stopping the one-year-old from running the train into Weasel's face as the bartender law on the ground (why… why do that?!)

"Alright, bed time I think!"

…

With Sebby passed out in his cot, one hand clutching his new space blanket, and Aunt May and Weasel had left (with Weasel kindly offering the older woman a lift…. Big softy), Peter and Wade flopped onto the sofa.

"Thank god we only have to do this once a year." Peter groaned, "I need time to recover."

Over the baby monitor, there was a high whine, causing them both to tense, before it all evened out again.

"You really want him to grow up and be a scientist huh?"

Peter winced, "You don't mind, do you?"

"Better a scientist than a mercenary, right?"

The tone was teasing, but there was something hidden beneath the words. However, before Peter could even think about reassuring his boyfriend, the baby monitor crackled to life once again, indicating that Seb was definitely awake this time.

"I got him." Peter didn't want to say that he was trying to retreat away from the conversation… but he was as he ran out of the room.

…..

Sebastian couldn't half shriek…. Not even just a sad little cry, it was a proper shriek of dismay and displeasure.

"Okay, okay…" Peter yawned wearily, swinging over to the cot as Sebastian glared up at him, "… I know, I know, you're not happy."

"Daddy! Daddy!"

Peter couldn't help but smile at the small, word-like sounds coming out of his son's mouth, the baby's hands reaching up for his Daddy as the tears slowly started to come to a stop.

"You just wanted some attention, didn't you?" Peter chuckled fondly, reaching in and pulling his son out, "You just wanted a little bit of attention!"

"Ah! Ah!"

"You do know your birthday is over right? Time to sleep, you can play on the new seesaw tomorrow."

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"Are you really arguing with him?"

Peter twisted around to see Wade entering the room, walking up behind him and wrapping his arms around the younger man. When it was clear that Wade wasn't going to say anything, Peter nervously cleared his throat.

"I don't mind if he doesn't become a scientist…" Peter whispered, smiling as Wade used their usual 'play dead' routine on Seb, watching as the toddler lay back down and closed his eyes, "… And being a mercenary pays well, right?"

"… I think I'd prefer it if we had a mini you."

"Well… I hope he gets your sense of humour."

"Does that mean I can teach him that joke about the nun in the- "

"- No, never."


	17. First Steps (Fenrir)

Patience was never a word associated with Thor.

His anger often got the better of him, and he needed to be in control of every situation.

So, when he decided that it was time for Fenrir to start walking, he sat himself across from him on the polished floors, watching the one-year old rock back and forth, drooling around his own fingers.

"Come closer little one."

Fenrir giggled at the sound of his voice, reaching down and replacing his fingers with his toe in his mouth, only for Thor to gently remove them.

"You do not know where those have been." He scolded, wincing as those red eyes glared at him, clearly offended, before resuming the suction.

"I don't see why you need to push him into walking…" Loki commented from the sofa, where he was reading yet another book of magic, "…He can walk fine in his wolf form."

"Father has already decided that he doesn't want to see Fenrir's wolf form..." Thor stated matter of factly, "… therefore, he needs to walk on two feet."

A hurt look flashed over Loki's face for a moment, before he placed the book to one side, leaning forwards and clapped his hands together. "Fenrir darling…" he called to the baby, "… come to Mummy."

It was impressive how quickly Fenrir crawled over to Loki.

"Maybe if I use food as an incentive…" Thor muttered to himself, only for Loki to send him a vicious glare.

"He's not one of your wild creatures that you need to tame!"

"I'm not saying that but- "

"- No, Thor." Loki's tone turned positively frosty.

Thor sighed, turning his attention back to his youngest, "Come on… come to me."

Ignoring his Father, Fenrir held out his arms to Loki, whining and pouting to try and get picked up, which Loki quickly obliged with, giving his son a quick kiss on the cheek, before placing him back on the ground.

Fenrir then held his arms out for Thor to do the same.

"Ah, Ah… if you wish to be held, then you must come here."

Fenrir whine got sharper, flexing his fingers as if trying to beckon Thor closer. When it became clear that he wasn't going to get what he wanted, his lower lip started to quiver.

"And now he's about to have a tantrum…" Loki sighed, "… So very like thy sire."

Thor frowned, but wisely chose to stay silent, moving to lift Fenrir into his arms, preventing the tantrum before it could get any worse. Fenrir looked very smug by this as he settled into his Father's arms with a big yawn.

"Please my son…" Thor begged, "… you have got to learn how to do this. I cannot always be around to help you up."

Another pout… this time looking exactly like Loki.

"Please do not look at me like that… don't you want to learn how to be a ferocious warrior?"

Fenrir's only response was to fall asleep.

….

The little speech of his wasn't designed for babies.

Fenrir was much more interested in almost everything else, rather than listening to her Father…. It didn't bode well for his teen years. Another Loki in the palace.

Sharpening his sword, he felt a tugging on his pant legs, prompting him to look down.

"Yes?" He stared down at his youngest, who beamed up at him, sharp little fangs on show. Once upon a time, the sight of those teeth would have sent a shudder up and down his spine… now, he couldn't resist smiling back.

"Maybe I should be going about this a different way…" he whispered, moving to sit on the floor with his son, "… copy me. Get up like this…" he got to his knees, "… climb up like this and then one foot in front of the other!"

Fenrir looked completely confused.

Sighing, Thor turned back to his sword. He didn't have time for this. Heading over to the opposite side of the room, he glanced back at his son, making sure that he wasn't in any danger. But Fenrir wasn't there.

He wasn't crawling either.

He was in the middle of taking his first two steps towards him. In seconds, Thor was on the ground, arms out-stretched as Fenrir stumbled forwards into them. "Excellent work my son!" he praised, "Now, do that for your Mother."

He patted Fenrir on the back and tried to send him of in the opposite direction, only to watch as the toddler took two steps and plopped back down.

"Maybe… you require some assistance?" he held out his hand to Fenrir, smiling as his son pulled himself back up and latched onto the fingers.

Patience was never a word associated with Thor.

His anger often got the better of him, and he needed to be in control of every situation.

So, when he decided that it was time for Fenrir to start walking, he sat himself across from him on the polished floors, watching the one-year old rock back and forth, drooling around his own fingers.

"Come closer little one."

Fenrir giggled at the sound of his voice, reaching down and replacing his fingers with his toe in his mouth, only for Thor to gently remove them.

"You do not know where those have been." He scolded, wincing as those red eyes glared at him, clearly offended, before resuming the suction.

"I don't see why you need to push him into walking…" Loki commented from the sofa, where he was reading yet another book of magic, "…He can walk fine in his wolf form."

"Father has already decided that he doesn't want to see Fenrir's wolf form..." Thor stated matter of factly, "… therefore, he needs to walk on two feet."

A hurt look flashed over Loki's face for a moment, before he placed the book to one side, leaning forwards and clapped his hands together. "Fenrir darling…" he called to the baby, "… come to Mummy."

It was impressive how quickly Fenrir crawled over to Loki.

"Maybe if I use food as an incentive…" Thor muttered to himself, only for Loki to send him a vicious glare.

"He's not one of your wild creatures that you need to tame!"

"I'm not saying that but- "

"- No, Thor." Loki's tone turned positively frosty.

Thor sighed, turning his attention back to his youngest, "Come on… come to me."

Ignoring his Father, Fenrir held out his arms to Loki, whining and pouting to try and get picked up, which Loki quickly obliged with, giving his son a quick kiss on the cheek, before placing him back on the ground.

Fenrir then held his arms out for Thor to do the same.

"Ah, Ah… if you wish to be held, then you must come here."

Fenrir whine got sharper, flexing his fingers as if trying to beckon Thor closer. When it became clear that he wasn't going to get what he wanted, his lower lip started to quiver.

"And now he's about to have a tantrum…" Loki sighed, "… So very like thy sire."

Thor frowned, but wisely chose to stay silent, moving to lift Fenrir into his arms, preventing the tantrum before it could get any worse. Fenrir looked very smug by this as he settled into his Father's arms with a big yawn.

"Please my son…" Thor begged, "… you have got to learn how to do this. I cannot always be around to help you up."

Another pout… this time looking exactly like Loki.

"Please do not look at me like that… don't you want to learn how to be a ferocious warrior?"

Fenrir's only response was to fall asleep.

….

The little speech of his wasn't designed for babies.

Fenrir was much more interested in almost everything else, rather than listening to her Father…. It didn't bode well for his teen years. Another Loki in the palace.

Sharpening his sword, he felt a tugging on his pant legs, prompting him to look down.

"Yes?" He stared down at his youngest, who beamed up at him, sharp little fangs on show. Once upon a time, the sight of those teeth would have sent a shudder up and down his spine… now, he couldn't resist smiling back.

"Maybe I should be going about this a different way…" he whispered, moving to sit on the floor with his son, "… copy me. Get up like this…" he got to his knees, "… climb up like this and then one foot in front of the other!"

Fenrir looked completely confused.

Sighing, Thor turned back to his sword. He didn't have time for this. Heading over to the opposite side of the room, he glanced back at his son, making sure that he wasn't in any danger. But Fenrir wasn't there.

He wasn't crawling either.

He was in the middle of taking his first two steps towards him. In seconds, Thor was on the ground, arms out-stretched as Fenrir stumbled forwards into them. "Excellent work my son!" he praised, "Now, do that for your Mother."

He patted Fenrir on the back and tried to send him of in the opposite direction, only to watch as the toddler took two steps and plopped back down.

"Maybe… you require some assistance?" he held out his hand to Fenrir, smiling as his son pulled himself back up and latched onto the fingers.


	18. Problem with Stane (Edwin)

Jarvis prepared his speech almost a week in advance. He had statistics, real-life examples and threats under his belt.

Tony was going to listen to him.

Taking a deep breath and making his way into the lab, Jarvis warmly smiled at the sight of Edwin lying on the floor, entertaining himself with a beads on a wire toy in his playpen as Tony focused on some holograms of his newest missile design, occasionally glancing over to make sure that Edwin was okay.

As soon as Edwin saw his Daddy standing in the doorway, he squealed in delight and started to bang another one of his toys against the floor, immediately catching Tony's attention.

"Jarvis!" he beamed, swiping the holograms away, "Love of my life! Please tell me you have good news?"

"I hope so." Jarvis headed over to the playpen, lifting Edwin into his arms. The one-year-olds cheeks were pink with excitement, big blue eyes glancing between his parents as he clutched at Jarvis' suit.

"God I made you too cute…" Tony muttered, "… I had to baby proof almost everything because you're a nosy pest, but you are too cute."

Edwin just beamed.

Tony then turned his attention to Jarvis, "Is everything alright? We're not having problems with the press again right?"

When the press had found out that Tony was legally married to a mysterious man, they went nuts, with many of the more conservative news channels saying some rather horrible things about the pair of them. It calmed down for a bit, until they learnt about Edwin's existence.

"No." Jarvis shook his head, and Tony sighed in relief, "CNN are still talking about traditional values, but no-one's really listening to them anymore. Many of the news channels are still asking for us all to come on for an interview."

"No way… my old man paraded me around and my entire life revolved around cameras and reporters." Tony shook his head, "I won't make Eddie go through that."

"We can't protect him forever." Jarvis pursed his lips in thought, "… maybe we should speak to Murdock and Nelson. They might be able to place an injunction against the gossip magazines."

"Yeah, maybe." Tony then frowned, "So, if it wasn't about the media, then what did you come up here for?"

There was a brief moment of silence, before Jarvis took a dee breath, "I would like to go on holiday… just the three of us."

"A holiday, but I have about fifteen new weapons to design and build prototypes and- "

"And you missed Edwin's first word- "

Dum-E had been thrilled at the tiny master calling out for him, rushing over with an excited squeal.

"- You missed his first steps- "

Edwin had seen Pepper entering the room, pushing himself to his feet shakily and quickly making his way over, wrapping jam-stained hands around her legs.

Pepper was too happy to complain… much.

(Jarvis had bought several new outfits for her to make up for it).

"- And I think over the last month, Rhodey and Happy have seen more of him, than you." The words may have seemed harsh, but Jarvis kept his voice calm, not wanting to sound accusatory, "And I know you do send time with him. He loves that toy car that you built for him and you always take time away to eat ice cream with him."

Tony still seemed a bit hurt by Jarvis's earlier statement, so Jarvis continued.

"Every time he wants to build a tower, you are right there beside him. You always read him a bedtime story, even if you're really busy or in another country."

"But I've missed all the important things…" Tony sighed.

"It's just… this month has been so hectic and- "

He stopped as Tony pulled him into a toe-curling kiss. When they pulled apart, Tony was giving his husband an affectionate smile.

"Let me have a word with Obie…" the genius whispered, "…. I've worked my butt off for the last year, he can't say no."

…..

Tony wasn't wrong often.

On this day, he was wrong.

Stane did mind.

"A month? Are you fucking kidding me?!"

Tony resisted the urge to flinch as he stared at the older man, who was pacing back and forth in the conference room. The man had never been especially fond of the idea of Tony making his AI a human body and then marrying him… if it had been a female body, he probably wouldn't have minded, but as it was, Tony was just a disappointment in another way.

He'd missed a lot over the past month, and now Obie was trying to make him miss more.

"It's one month Obie…" he eventually sighed, finally managing to get a word in edgeways, "… one month is not going to kill the company. I've put everything into this company, for six years now, I've not slept for days at a time, I sometimes barely leave the office or labs, and I've missed so much of Edwin growing up." His confidence grew and he slowly pushed himself to his feet, meeting his Godfather's eyes, "You can't control me like this, you can't say when I work and when I don't work. I took over several years ago, remember?"

Obadiah just glared at him.

"I'm the owner of Stark Industries, Dad left it to me, not you! You can't stop me from taking a month's holiday! Be glad I'm not leaving until the new year!"

Silence.

"Sorry…" Tony sighed, "… it's just- Jarvis really wants this to happen and- "

"- when did the robot control the creator?"

The words were clearly spoke in anger, or so Tony hoped.

"I love Jarvis…" He whispered, "… what I do with my personal life is no-one's business. If I choose to make my AI a body and then a child, then that's my business, it has no effect on the company." He took a deep breath, "And you really have that much of a problem with it, then you're free to leave. I'll buy you out and you live out the rest of your life in retirement."

"You. Need. Me."

Tony shook his head, "No, I need someone to support me, someone who will stand by my side… If you don't think you can do that, then leave."

Before Stane could reply, there was a cautious knock on the door, as Pepper poked her head through the gap. "My apologies for the interruption…" she stated, "… but Mister Jarvis is here to see Mister Stark."

"Tell him to wait and- "

"- let him in Miss Potts." Tony quickly interrupted Stane, flashing him a quick glare, before changing it into a smile as his husband walked through the door.

As usual, the man was impeccably dressed, wearing a dark suit jacket, pants and shoes, combined with a dark green shirt and black tie. Edwin, who was carefully balanced in one arm, was wearing a dark grey, black-striped jumper with a love heart on the front (clearly something recent from the baby fashion show), and grey jeans.

"Hey!" Tony forced a smile onto his face, a desperate attempt to make it seem as though everything was normal, "We'll be done in a moment."

Jarvis clearly didn't believe him, simply nodded and leaned back against the wall, setting Edwin down, watching carefully as his son headed over to Tony eagerly, babbling in glee. Tony couldn't help but beam at this, lifting Edwin into his own arms and placing the toddler on his lap, before his attention back to Stane.

"This is happening Obadiah…" he sighed, "… It's one month. Miss Potts will let me know if there's an emergency, and don't forget that I have Murdock and Nelson on the payroll. Those two can handle anything."

He pushed himself to his feet and moved to leave the room, Jarvis and Pepper following on behind. Once he was sure that they were out of earshot, Tony stopped and turned to Jarvis, a weak smile on his face.

"He's probably just having a bad day." He instantly said, already thinking up excuses for Stane's behaviour, "Give him a few days, he'll be back to his usual self."

Personally, Jarvis didn't think much of Stane's 'usual' self, but Tony always got defensive when it was brought up. It was understandable really… Stane had been like a second father to Tony, helping him with everything.

Instead, he took Edwin back and pressed a kiss against Tony's cheek, "Don't forget about dinner later."

It wasn't worth the argument.


	19. Swear Jar (Joey)

Foggy knew that he had to start putting specific rules down when Joey cursed at the age of two. It wasn't like he could put a list of them up on the fridge, but if he had to pin Matt down and tell him the rules, he would.

Matt had the nerve to act confused.

"Swear…. I don't swear."

"Don't pull any of that Catholic… stuff with me." Foggy snarled, "You do swear, in fact, you swore last night when you climbed in through the window, fell to the floor and said the S word very loudly. So loudly, that our son heard."

"Joey has only just turned two, I don't think we really need to- "

"- He said it this morning… the S word."

Matt was clearly biting back a smirk, "Oh? Precocious little thing, huh?"

"He said it in front of Mum, Matty!"

"And what was her reaction?" Matt imagined she probably found it hilarious, trying to scold Joey, whilst laughing at the same time

"She yelled at me. Me! For something that's your fault!" Foggy jabbed Matt in the chest, "I tried apologising, but she wouldn't listen!"

Matt frowned, "I don't think I've ever heard your Mum shouting?" Probably Foggy just over-reacting, just a little bit, "But I am sorry. I honestly don't mean to curse, but a mugger got in a lucky shot and I banged it against the window-sill and- "

"- So, you admit that you need to watch your mouth?"

Matt winced, knowing that he had walked right into that one. "I'll… be more careful coming home."

"No swearing!"

…

"Oh for… God's sake!"

"Hey!" Matt smirked, "If I can't curse, then you can't blaspheme."

"I didn't curse!"

"New rule. Cursing or blaspheming means that we have to put some money in the jar. Once the jar is full, we can always buy something nice for Joey."

"… Deal."

…

"I said- well, what I said isn't worth five dollars!"

Foggy rolled his eyes, "We're lawyers, I think we can afford it, especially with the nice little bonuses Stark gives us."

"… What if we have guests, would you make them pay a fiver?"

Foggy frowned, "Yeah, you're right. It's unfair to force our guests to pay that much. How about, one dollar when Joey's within hearing distance and fifty cents when he's not. How does that sound?"

When Matt smirked, reaching up to pull Foggy into a thankful kiss, there was a cry from the other room.

"DADDY! PAPA!"

"Damn it." Foggy whispered, prompting Matt to cackle and slap him lightly on the arm.

"Fifty cents in the jar. Your rule, remember?"

Foggy just moved away, flipping him the bird, and ignoring the victorious cry that he needed to add another fifty cents to the jar.

….

"Shit." Matt hissed under his breath, as his braille reader coughed and spluttered before falling completely dead.

Foggy frowned, glancing up from where he was playing with Joey. "What was that?"

"The braille reader…" Matty hissed, "… it's died, and I need to finish reading up on this case before our meeting tomorrow. And don't even mention me putting a dollar in the jar… please!" Slowly, he pushed his way away from the table and slowly made his way over to his son's playtime table.

"Hey Joey…" he whispered, taking a seat next to the toddler as Foggy made his way over to the braille reader in the hope that maybe he could fix it. "…. what are you drawing?"

"A car."

Matt would have to take his word for it, watching as Joey reached out for his toy car again, using it as a basis for his drawing. Despite being blind himself, Joey's drawing's were apparently "very good", so said the day-care worker.

"Shit!" Foggy cursed, a lot louder than Matt had, "Shit, it's completely dead. Looks like I'm going to have to read them out to you for a while whilst we get a new one."

Before Matt could answer, Joey decided that this would be the perfect time to speak up.

"Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!"

Both Matt and Foggy glanced over at their son in horror

"Shit! Shit!"

"No Joey!" Foggy quickly scolded, "Don't say that. Remember what Grandma said?"

"… Shit?"

"Don't. Say. That."

Joey frowned, before turning his attention back to his drawing and continuing to say "shit" quietly under his breath. Foggy turned to Matt and glared at him, knowing full well that his partner knew he was being glared at.

"This is your fault you know." He hissed.

"You didn't exactly help!"

…

Foggy sighed wearily as he read over the same sentence for the thirtieth time in a row. With the braille reader out of commission, he was having to do twice as much work in order to keep up with everything.

As they waited for the new one to arrive, Matt was more than happy to do what he could for work and look after Joey at the same time.

Unless of course, he had to recover from his midnight activities…. Like now.

So, Foggy was left with dealing with emails (many of them marked URGENT) and keep an eye on a hyperactive toddler at the same time. For the moment, Joey was playing with his building blocks, and had been for the last half hour.

And then Foggy felt a tugging on the back of his jumper.

"Daddy. Daddy… bored!"

Foggy resisted the urge to sigh.

"You can't be bored, didn't Grandma only get you those yesterday or something?"

"Tower fell."

"Why don't you build a house instead?"

"Boring."

"Why don't you play with your cars instead?"

"Okay!" Joey slowly made his way back over to his toy box, pulling out all his cars and playing with them… for about five minutes before he was back.

"T'irsty."

"Your juice is on your table remember? Remember what we taught you? About reaching for it slowly so you don't knock it over?"

He watched his son out of the corner of his eyes, beaming when the toddler successfully managed to grab his cup and drink the juice inside. Seconds later however, he was back next to Foggy again. "Whatcha doin'?" he asked, taking another gulp.

"Working. Important lawyer stuff, you know."

"I have go?"

"I thought you were playing with your cars?"

"No. Wanna help." Joey pouted… which was just adorable, and Foggy could not be blamed for crumbling so easily.

"…. Come on then." Foggy pushed the chair back slightly so that Joey could clamber onto his lap. As Joey reached out for where he knew the keyboard to be, Foggy winced at how sticky the fingers were as they reached out. Just before those sticky fingers could make contact with the keyboard, Foggy gently grabbed his wrist and pulled him away.

"Ah, ah, ah." First lesson, you never touch a computer with sticky paws like these. Come on, let's go and wash them."

With the hand washing complete (with Foggy's shirt only slightly soaked), the two settled back in front of the computer. After listening to Foggy type for a few moments, Joey leaned forwards to have his own go, tapping out a few nonsensical words as he giggled in delight.

"What say? What say?"

"…. You've made a compelling argument for the defence. Come on, let me explain it to you."

"Shit!"

"No… not shit."


	20. Catch

It was hard to say who was more excited about today, Steve or Oliver. Bucky smirked as he watched everyone get set up for the baseball game, that had been arranged between the villagers of the recently saved village and the commandos.

It was a piece of normality that everyone had missed since this war began. And because Oliver had never seen a baseball game, then this was an even bigger occasion.

Bucky still looked forward to the day when he could take his son to see a proper game though.

"Oliver, we're going to be late. The game's almost started!" Steve chuckled, not in his Captain America uniform for once. It had been agreed that him and Bucky wouldn't take part on account of the super serum running through their veins. It had to be fair after all.

"Sowwy Daddy, I had to go pee!"

"Again?" Steve sighed, bending down and adjusting his son's clothes, which were all twisted up, "Didn't you go ten minutes ago?"

"Daddy says pee when you can!"

Steve glanced over at Bucky, rolling his eyes as the other man smirked at him, mouthing 'bad influence' at Bucky when the other man looked over.

"Well, hopefully you won't need it again."

They took a seat next to Bucky, who had laid out a tatty blanket for them all to sit on. The toddler squirmed for several moments, twisting around to try and see everything as the finishing touches were set up for the game.

Other young children were wandering around the area, including a young girl who couldn't have been much older than Oliver himself. She practically lit up at the sight of him, tottering her way over and beaming at him.

"Jouer! Jouer!"

Oliver frowned, glancing up at his parents, "Daddy, I don't understand!"

"She want's you to play with her, kid." Bucky chuckled, "I think she likes you."

His face scrunching up in disgust, Oliver turned away from the girl and buried his face into his Dad's chest, whining when the girl tugged on his arm. When he made the mistake of pulling away to look at her, she took a chance and started to kiss his face, covering him in slobbery four-year-old kisses.

"No!" Oliver protested, "NO!"

At the toddler's scream, a frantic woman came rushing over, apologising profusely for her daughter's behaviour in French, as she pulled the little girl away.

"You didn't like that, huh kid?" Bucky smirked, "Your Daddy always made that exact same face when the dames try that on him…. Still does really."

"Bucky, you and I both know that the girls who try that nowadays, only want me because of the uniform."

Before Bucky could say anything, the game started, and they turned their attention to it. Of course, when Oliver started to cheer for the wrong team, the pair were suitably shocked.

"No, no, no!" Bucky chuckled, "We want to cheer for Dum Dum and all the commandos, remember?"

Oliver tilted his head to the side, almost as if he was listening, before the game caught his attention again and he was back to cheering for the wrong team.

….

"Well that was… fun." Bucky sighed.

Not wanting to make Oliver sad, because his favourite team had lost, the Howling Commandos and the others in that team had decided to lose with dignity. Bucky was never going to let them live it down.

"Play catch?" a small voice asked from around the general vicinity of his knees.

"Not right now kiddo." Bucky replied absently, deciding to clean his gun to keep himself busy as Steve went to discuss upcoming tactics for when they moved on. There was silence for a few moments, before the voice piped up again.

"Play catch?"

"Not now kiddo." The nephew of one of the officers walked over, wanting to ask for sniper lessons.

The "play catch" was more insistent this time around, and less of a question… almost like a demand. Really that should have been a warning.

"Play CATCH!"

A booted foot violently kicked Bucky's shin, causing him to yelp and drop his gun in surprise. "Ah! Son of a- !" He barely managed to swallow down the rest of the curse as he turned to glare at his son. Using his foot, he pushed Oliver back, making sure that the toddler didn't stumble and fall.

"Do not kick people." He ordered, "That's bad… that's very, very bad!"

Oliver pouted for a few seconds, before perking up again. "Play catch?"

"…. Don't you dare use those eyes on me."

Sad puppy eyes… something that Oliver had completely inherited from Steve and used it to his advantage.

"Alright, fine…." Bucky sighed, "… I'll play with you for a little while, but you have to promise me to stay within my sights at all times, okay?"

Yes, he caved but so would everybody else when faced with eyes like that.

"Catch?"

"Yes Oli, let's go and play catch."

"Yay!"


	21. Snow Day (Ian)

"Ian, please stop wriggling like that." Phil sighed, trying to wrestle his son's arm into the jumper sleeve.

"But Daddy- "

"- No. I know you're excited, but I'm not having you catch a cold because you're not wrapped up properly." Finally, he managed to pull the jumper over Ian's head.

"But I wanna see the snow!"

"We will, but it's very cold… don't make Aunt Nat tell you the horror stories about little boys like you losing fingers because of the cold." Harsh, but Ian let him put the gloves on pretty much straight-away, so that was something.

"Can I bring Blog?"

"Of course Blog can come along."

Ian wriggled free, racing into his room and grabbing his favourite teddy bear, before pausing… and grabbing a Build-A-Bear teddy, rushing to get it's coat off.

"Ian… what are you doing?"

"Blog can't lose his fingers! He has to be warm!" Socks were pulled out of the draws and shoved onto poor Blog's hands and feet. Once done, Phil couldn't help but smile at the sight.

"Just let me grab a scarf for you, and then we can go."

"Can Blog have a scarf?"

"I don't think we have one small enough."

Ian was clearly not happy with this, but remained silent anyway, taking his Dad's hand as they headed out the door. They drove to the main SHIELD base, where Nick Fury was waiting for them.

"Uncle Nick!" Ian ran ahead, ignoring how Coulson called out for him, "Do you have a scarf for Blog?"

Nick stared down at him for a few moments, before bending down to the toddler's level. "No… but you can put him in your coat. That'll keep him warm."

"Okay!"

Nick chuckled fondly, before turning his attention to Coulson, "Come on, before the snow melts."

"In the middle of winter? Really?"

"Alright then, let's go before your son grabs a sled without us."

It probably wasn't dignified for the director of SHIELD to be found sledging down a hill, but Fury didn't seem to care as he grabbed a sled large enough for the three of them and dragged it towards a large hill. Once at the top, they all climbed on, Phil pulling Ian onto his lap.

"Daddy!" Ian screamed at the top of his lungs.

"Indoor voice Ian, I'm right here." Phil tightened his grip on his son, gently taking Blog and making sure the teddy was secure in Ian's coat, seconds before Fury pushed them down.

It was a short trip to the bottom of the hill. The snow on the ground was invitingly soft and glittering in the sunlight. Unfortunately, it wasn't completely smooth, so when the sled landed with a gentle bump at the bottom of the hill, it sent a heavily bundled Ian flying up into the air, landing face first in the snow.

Within seconds, Phil was jumping to his feet and scrambling after him, as Fury hissed in sympathy.

"Ian!" Phil scooped his son up out of the snow, setting the toddler on his feet and wiping snow out of his eyes.

"Daddy, m'okay!" Ian protested, running away before tripping and going sprawling once again.

This time, Fury couldn't hold back his laughter as Phil sighed and went to pick his son up again.

"You can't run like that." Phil gently scolded, "What if you really hurt yourself next time?"

"I won't!"

Phil resisted the urge to point out that Ian was a Barton and getting injured was in their nature.

"Leave him be." Fury made his way over, "If he gets hurt, he gets hurt and he learns something from it." He gestured to the sled, "Stop being a stick in the mud and let's go again."

After some fussing from Coulson about the size of the next hill, they headed to the next hill.

"Alright." Fury pulled Ian closer, before looking up at Coulson "I'll hold onto the kid, and you'll push us, deal?"

"…. I can't see this going well."

"Don't be such a stick in the mud and push!"

"Yeah Daddy, push!" Ian said, craning around his godfather to look at his Dad. His eyes were big, bright and full of excitement, and Phil couldn't help but smile.

"Alright, hold on tight!" He gave them a push and they went flying down the hill, with Ian let out a startled but delighted watched them anxiously until they came to a complete stop at the bottom. He heard Fury's chuckles as the pair of them got up, and Fury lifted it up to carry it back up, with Ian running in front of him.

"Daddy! Did you see? Did you see?" The toddler asked in excitement, and once again, Phil couldn't help but smile.

"I did, was that fun?"

"Yeah, it was like flying!" Ian then turned to Fury, "Again! Again!"

For the next couple of hours, Ian giggled and laughed as he skidded down a couple of different hills, one of which was so steep, that Fury and Ian were thrown off halfway down, the pair just laughing it off.

By the end of the day, Ian was completely worn out as Phil carried him to the car… he still protested though.

"Nooooo…" he whined, eyes only half-open, "No, I wanna keep playing!"

Phil just continued to rock him, humming a soothing lullaby in order to try and get him to go to sleep sooner.

"Daddy… can we do it 'gain?"

"Someday, yes."

After Ian whined for Blog through another yawn, Phil chuckled, strapping the toddler into the car and kissing him on the forehead. Ian made sleepy, lip-smacking noises as he finally snuggled down to sleep.

"Ready to go?"

Phil winced at the loud tone, "Sssh." He hissed, jerking his head towards his son, who was slumped forward in his seat, completely asleep.

Chuckling, Fury lowered his voice, "Did you see his face when he went down that last hill?"

"He's a Barton…" Phil groaned, "… I can see him leaping off buildings in the future."

"Oh yeah, 'cause you're so calm and well-behaved."

"More than Clint."

"A lemming's got more survival skills than Barton."


	22. Play Group (Sebastian)

**Hello mums and dads of New York, and welcome to Happy Parent Playgroup. We meet twice a week at Trinity Church on 75 Broadway, and we're open to all creeds of life. Hope to see you soon!**

Peter felt like he really should have thought about this more as he walked up the steps to the church, but it was really too cold to hang around and Sebastian was starting to fuss, pulling on his arm in an attempt to get away. The wind whistled down the back of their necks, and even the inside of the drafty church would be better than out here.

The playgroup was located in the main hall of the church. The group was made up entirely of women and Peter, and honestly, Peter felt a little intimidated by this. For a moment, he seriously thought about going home and calling the whole thing off.

Sebastian didn't really need to socialise…. Right?

Maybe he could hang around in one of the toy stores for a time, bribe Sebastian so that the toddler didn't blab to Aunt May.

"Hello!"

Peter blinked, flushing when he realised that all the other parents were staring right at him.

"Peter, right?" What looked like the leader of the group, "I think you sent me an email a few days ago… Georgina, by the way."

"Er, yeah… nice to meet you."

"Well don't be shy! Come and sit down! What does your son like to play with?"

"Anything that makes a noise really." Finding one chair that was unoccupied, Peter took a seat, frowning when Sebastian refused to let himself be detached, not even when a young girl, who was probably only a year shy from going to school bounded over and eagerly introduced herself as Olivia.

Sebastian just shook his head, not acting like the rambunctious toddler Peter knew and loved.

"What's his name?" Another parent piped up.

"Sebastian… Sebby."

At the mention of his name, Seb just buried his face into the crook of Peter's neck, prompting everyone else to coo.

"You know, we don't see many fathers here." One woman cooed, "Any chance of his meeting Mummy as well?"

"… Papa…. Actually."

"Oh." The mothers looked a little startled for a moment, "Alright."

The room felt a bit tenser and Peter didn't even try to stop Sebastian from clambering onto his lap and clinging onto him. As the conversation continued, Peter pressed the side of his nose against his son's head, gratefully accepting some juice when someone brought it around.

For a moment, he just breathed in Sebastian's scent. Talcum powder, paint from the last art project. It was calming and just what he needed.

"Ignore them."

Peter flinched, turning to a woman who was standing beside him, a sympathetic look on her face.

"They just don't know how to deal with anything that's different." She glanced at Seb, "How old is he?"

"Three."

"Ah, past the terrible twos?"

"Yeah, into the tricky threes." Peter sighed, ruffling his son's hair fondly, "He's got a few behavioural problems."

"Temper tantrums."

"Of a nuclear proportion."

Sebastian huffed sulkily against Peter's chest, clearly disagreeing with the statement, but still refusing to speak up.

"Come on kiddo, why don't you go and play?"

Sebastian shook his head, trying to snuggle even closer.

"No, I'm putting my foot down I'm afraid." Peter pried his sons' arms away from his neck, "Please, just try and get on with the other children."

Sebastian allowed himself to be placed on the ground, but refused to go any further than that, pressing himself up against Peter's legs.

"Alright…" Peter sighed, "… your toys are in the bag."

Huddling as close as he could to his Dad, Seb reached into the bag and pulled out his Captain America figure, along with a random assortment of other figures who served as the evil Hydra.

Soon, they were all locked in a deadly battle, with Sebastian muttering to himself.

So, when the minister confronted his Dad, he could still hear every word that was said.

"I'm very sorry…" the minister sighed, "… but you have been asked to leave."

"Why?" His Dad sounded a little heartbroken, "We're not doing anyone any harm, and he's just playing quietly here."

"Some of the parents feel… uncomfortable!"

"Why! I'm not doing anything wrong!"

"Sir, please don't shout at me."

Sebastian grabbed Captain American and clutched him to his chest, glancing up at the minister, who was looking really uncomfortable.

His Daddy was upset.

Nobody was allowed to upset his Daddy, Papa said so.

Which is how the Captain America figure ended up hitting the minister in the arm.

"Sebastian, no!" Peter immediately scolded, picking the figure off the ground, "I'm sorry, he's not usually- "

"- Hydra! He Hydra!" Sebastian glared at the stunned minister, before turning to his Dad, who was clearly ready to cry, "Hydra!"

"Sir." The minister looked serious, "I think you should leave."

Seconds later, they were storming out of the church and down the street. When they were far enough away, Peter finally slowed down, placing Seb back on the ground, allowing him to walk. When they made it back to the apartment, closing the door behind them, Peter practically collapsed onto the sofa.

"He were bastard."

His eyes shot open, as he turned to Seb. "What?"

"He were bastard!"

There was a brief moment of silence, before Peter laughed wetly, "I shouldn't encourage this…" he leaned over and pulled Sebastian closer, kissing the top of his head, before pulling him onto his lap, "… I love you, you know that right?"

"I know."

"My little hero…. Like Captain America, hmmm?"

"Like 'piderman!"

"Yeah… like Spiderman."


End file.
